Ethiopia - Odako Village

Ethiopia is the established African grower of floral, light and tea-like coffees but these taste profiles aren’t the only ones the birthplace of coffee has to offer.

With its many distinct growing regions Ethiopia delivers a wide range of excellent and unique coffees. From the citric and floral flavours of Yirgacheffe, the honey sweet lots found in Sidama and the earthy and chocolatey naturals from Harar - there’s something here for everyone. 

‘Odako’ brings us back to the highly prized Sidama region, this is where some of the very best coffees are grown. This particular lot is from Odako Village in the Shantawene area; named after the sacred Odako tree, where community members traditionally met to resolve issues. 

Odako was produced by Gatta farm who are part of the Daya Bensa Co-operative.

The coffee was dried on African beds for 13-15 days; to ensure uniform drying each bed is assigned to one person who will rotate the cherries every 15 minutes. When the cherries are received they are separated and the coffee is kept separate throughout drying, processing, and storage. Likewise, when we receive the green coffee, the label states the delivery dates, farm name, lot number, and other details related to the particular lot.

This detail can be delivered to us because of improved technology and systems, alongside greater commitment across the supply chain that has enabled this kind of improvement in traceability and transparency. There is corresponding visibility for farmers who are also able to receive higher payments - traceability gives valuable recognition to these producers and validates where a coffee is grown, picked and processed, with the assurance that it was produced ethically and sustainably. 

We believe it’s crucial to continue telling the story of each coffee we buy and spread awareness about the work going on at origin. In Ethiopia we also contribute to the Stumping Project, a fantastic initiative that supports individual farmers through doubling their crop over three years and the Girls Gotta Run Foundation who empower girls in Ethiopia through running and education. Learn more about these and other initiatives here.