ETHIOPIA KABIRA NATURAL

WILD BERRIES | BANANA MUFFIN | CHOCOLATE | From the mountains of the Jimma Zone, in western Ethiopia, comes this coffee produced by Mustefa Abakeno, a small producer, farmer, and exporter who has built a work model over the years based on quality, meticulous processing, and traceability. Mustefa manages a farm of approximately 18 hectares, located at an altitude of 2,040 meters, where he grows different varieties of coffee sourced from the Jimma Agricultural Research Centre, combining the region's tradition with a continuous quest for quality and productivity. Mustefa's journey toward higher quality began with the purchase of a three-disk pulper, which allowed him to process part of his harvest using the fully washed method. This significant investment enabled him to have greater control over post-harvest stages and to obtain more uniform and consistent batches. In 2018, following regulatory changes that allowed Ethiopian producers to export their coffee directly, Mustefa began his exporting business and founded the Beshasha Wet Mill. The station processes both the coffee from his own farm and cherries supplied by local producers, who generally manage plots between 4 and 10 hectares. The collaboration with Falcon in Addis Ababa has contributed to further developing the coffee’s quality through direct work at every stage of the supply chain: from cherry selection to drying, from batch separation to the agronomic management of the crops. This relationship has also helped build a more direct and transparent supply chain, favoring better compensation for producers and greater traceability for buyers. Since 2021, the agronomist Harun has been working closely with Mustefa and the producers who deliver their cherries to the wet mill. His work focuses on training and assistance both in the fields and at the processing station, with particular attention to good agronomic practices, the selection of ripe cherries, and consistent drying. The improvements implemented at the Beshasha Wet Mill have allowed for even better quality control. These include the use of shade nets to protect the drying beds during the hottest hours, more rigorous cherry selection at the time of delivery, batch separation by harvest day, and constant moisture monitoring before assembling the batches. The result is a coffee that authentically tells the story of the Jimma territory and the evolution of a supply chain increasingly focused on quality. It is a project built through investment, direct collaboration, and control of post-harvest stages, where the work of the producer and that of local small-scale farmers meet to bring a traceable, meticulously crafted coffee that is representative of western Ethiopia to life.