TRACEABILITY

It's no mystery to anyone that Jimma produces our favourite Ethiopian coffees. And Kolla Bolcha is an excellent example of this trend: although it is a new cooperative under the umbrella of the Kata Muduga Farmers' Union, we can't wait to try it for the first time.
 
Building on Agaro's extensive history, where an investment from USAID's Technoserve project helped bring brand new processing equipment to this previously neglected and undifferentiated region, Kolla Bolcha's immaculate processing makes for an incredible showcase of the potential of good Ethiopian coffee.
 
The secret? After the Penagos processing team mechanically removes most of the fruit and mucilage from the seeds, the seeds are soaked overnight in concrete tanks, allowing any remaining sugar to be completely removed from their surface, so that the coffees are perfectly clean when they arrive on the drying beds for the 12+ days they will need to dry.
 
The cooperative currently processes the coffees of some 400 local farmers. Kolla Bolcha is located right next to the famous Biftu Gudina, and is another example of the success of the Technoserve project in Western Ethiopia. The last decade has seen the region go from selling only low-quality natural coffees to producing some of the most prized and sought-after coffees by importers and roasters around the world.