Ethiopia Genji Challa

ABOUT THE PRODUCER

Genji Challa is a related washing station to the famous Nano Challa which was established in 2019. This station was born out of a need for more space as the membership grew and the volumes of cherries being delivered became too much for the capacity of the Nano Challa station alone. There are now over 600 members split between the two sites situated in the Ethiopian highlands in natural forests. Nano Challa farm's success and growth were boosted in 2010 when it was chosen to be part of the Technoserve Coffee Initiative alongside other small communities in Jimma. Techoserve is a leading nonprofit organization operating in almost 30 countries around the world: it provides technical assistance and training to producer groups and helps coordinate agronomists and business advisors to help improve coffee quality, assist in the management of debt, reinvestment and the fair distribution of funds to each coop member. The impact of the initiative was huge, as it helped coops like Nano Challa transition from natural processing to washed, via the building of washing stations. These allowed them to completely change the market and quality they had access to and the premiums of Grade 1 Ethiopian Specialty Coffees.

ABOUT THE COFFEE

This coffee is cultivated at 2000 mt above sea level; farm members cultivate on a land of 3 hectares. As is the case across Ethiopia, most of the coffees grown locally are organic by default, and consist mostly of old, naturally indigenous heirloom varieties. The coffee after picking is delivered to the washing station, then let floated before being de-pulped using a Penagos Eco Pulper. The coffee is then soaked in clean water in concrete tanks for 8 hours before drying; firstly skin-dried and sorted under shade, before being sun-dried for approximately 10 days on raised African drying beds.