Foge
The Coffee
The Foge Washing Station is located in the heart of Yirgacheffe with a total of 518 farmers delivering red cherries from two communities, Hafursawaro close to 100 farmers and Foge with 418 farmers. The station has sun exposure the whole day, it's located on a hill with cold winds hitting the slope and Cherries are delivered mid-day from neighbours and sorted until late afternoon. We started to work with this family in 2019. They are a producer family living in Yirgacheffe town, and have six stations in Yirgacheffe and Guji. The family's export business, Kanketi Coffee, was founded by their father. The siblings Tsedenia and Fikadu both grew up in Yirgacheffe, immersed in coffee their entire lives.
The Farmer
Washing station: Foge
Founded: 2010
Altitude: 2100 masl
Zone: Gedeo
Region: Yirgacheffe
Village: Foge
Number of farms: 518
Farm size: 1-2 hectares
Geolocation coordinates:
Vegetation: Semi-forest and garden
Avg farm size: 0.5 - 2 Ha
Soil type: Rich and fertile red soil
Trees per hectare: 1800-2400
Cherry yield per tree on average: 3 kgs
Average selling price of farmers per kilo of cherries in 2020/2021 harvest: 26 birr
Average selling price of farmers per kilo of cherries in 2021/2022 harvest: 60 birr
Processing
Post-Harvest Processing - Washed
Harvest and cherry selection
Cherries are collected manually and hand sorted later.
Pulping and pre-grading
The cherries are pulped by a traditional Agaarde Discpulper. Skin and fruit pulp are removed before the machine grades the parchment in water as 1st or 2nd quality, determined by density.
Fermentation
Wet fermentation for 48-72 hours
Washing and grading in channels
Coffees are washed in channels, and graded in water by density. The lower density (lower quality) will float and are removed, leaving only the denser and therefore higher quality beans which are separated as higher grade lots.
Soaked under clean water
After fermentation, soaking takes place for 2 hours
Drying and handsorting
Coffee is then piled up in layers which are 2cm in height and dried over a 10 day period then followed by hand sorting for 2-4 hours.
Post-Harvest Processing - Natural
Harvest and cherry selection
Cherries are collected manually and hand sorted later.
Sorting and pre-sorting
The cherries will then be moved to the drying beds. Underripe and defective cherries will be sorted out by hand during the first days.
Fermentation
When producing naturals the level of fermentation will be determined by the thickness and layer during the first days of drying in combination with temperature. Fermentation is slower at higher altitudes as temperatures are generally lower.
Drying and handsorting
The cherries are dried in a relatively thin layer at about 3-4 cm the first days. They will build up the layers to 6-10 cm after a few days. The coffees are moved frequently and they will be covered during the hottest hours of the day to protect the cherries from intense sunlight, then again at night to protect against humidity. This will also help improve quality as the coffee is rested and the drying more homogeneous. Drying naturals at these altitudes can take up to 20 days.
