The climb from the southern end of the Great Rift Valley, through Shashamene and past Awasa is gradual, and coffee trees slowly increase in frequency, large, lanky, and dusty by the roadside, many so tall they lean on the roofs of houses for support. Coffees here are earlier than in the far south, and the vast majority are fully washed, sought after for their delicate fruits, herbaceousness, and buoyant citric acid. Sidama has one of the most robust cooperative unions in the country with 53 member cooperatives, as well as a thriving local industry of independent washing stations and the occasional estate. This coffee from Daniel Tunsisa, however, is a rare exception to the Sidama coffee norms for three big reasons. First, it comes from a private, small estate managed entirely by Daniel, from tree to export. Next, the coffee is naturally processed, which is not extremely rare for Sidama, but much more so than neighborhing Gedeo and Guji zones. Finally, Daniel’s farm is just under 6 hectares in size, considered very large for this part of Ethiopia, where 0.5-1 hectares is the norm. Daniel came to farming through his family: Daniel’s father owned a large farm which he split among his sons, and over the years Daniel has added to his original property to achieve the 5.86 hectares he currently manages. , who upon their marriage granted Tona a portion of the family land, like they did his brothers. Daniel represents the farm and sells coffee under his own name. The farm employs a local staff of 45 to help the family complete harvesting and processing each year. Daniel’s farm is located in the Chire district, in far eastern Sidama Zone, on the outskirts of the Harenna Forest National Park. Naturals on Daniel’s farm are all processed identically: coffee is harvested, inspected for imperfections, and then moved immediately to raised beds for drying the same day. Raised beds are predominantly constructed from local bamboo and hardwood trees. Cherry dries for three weeks, during which they are regularly rotated, and also covered during the searing hot mid-day hours to prevent sun damage to the coffee’s skin. Once coffee is completely dry it is transported to nearby Bensa town for primary milling, where the coffee seed is stripped of its pod, and then samples are sent to buyers. Once the coffee has been sold, it continues to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital city, for final milling and bagging for export. Changes in the Ethiopian export rules have opened pathways to develop relationships with vertically integrated suppliers. Royal has seized on the opportunity over the past few years to work with emerging small businesses looking to sell their coffee direct. Small producers like Daniel, prior to having an export license, historically had little choice but to sell to local consolidators representing independent washing stations, or join a regional cooperative.
