Our Head of Coffee Dave is taking a couple of our roasting partners to visit Ethiopia and meet Moata Raya, founder of coffee exporter Mecota Trading, who will be taking the group to visit the various farmers that he works with.
The group have been to visit Basha Bekele, who we bought coffee from last year; the very same coffee that went on to win Ethiopia’s Cup of Excellence (CoE).
Something Dave has noted on his visit is that the farmers who won CoE are now in high demand, able to raise their prices and have more control over the coffee they produce. This is a hugely positive thing, and other farmers are taking notice, beginning to implement the same techniques (such as shade drying) as winning farmers, as well as setting aside their own coffees for entry into CoE.
Basha Bekele has a background in quality coffee production; his father used to be the treasurer for Daye Bensa Coffee Company, which is the biggest exporter out of Sidama. Basha has been able to follow in his father’s footsteps, and the two now own 15.5 hectares of coffee trees together.
The group visited Basha’s new site in Gibe, which adds to his other two sites in Kokose and Murago.
Dave asked Basha what his inspirations are, and he named a company called Allo Coffee, who are huge in Asia. Also driving Basha is the fact that he wants to keep pushing quality to gain more exposure, which will ultimately help market his coffee.
Because of his win in CoE, Basha is able to reinvest into his coffee production, buying more land and expanding his operations.
