Ethiopia’s Sidamo region is one of the best-known coffee-producing regions in the world. Like the rest of Ethiopia, it’s divided into several woredas (districts) and kebeles (communities) with washing stations throughout—each offering unique terroir. The Arbegona woreda is one of them, and within it lies the Bochessa kebele.

To get to Arbegona we have to fly to the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, then take a local flight to Arbegona. We drive from there to reach Bochessa, where we find the central washing station for the community. The kebeles that make up Arbegona lie throughout the mountains along access roads.

This washing station was established in 2022 on 1.5 hectares of land, currently processing a total annual volume between 500–600 tons of finished green coffee. 823 farmers deliver their cherry to this washing station. They meticulously wash, pulp, ferment and dry their coffees, leading to a superb final product. After processing, the coffee is stored safely to preserve the quality of parchment until it is moved to the dry mill. Fully dry parchment is packed in bags and either moved to the parchment store or bulked in conditioning bins.

To maintain traceability along with quality, they’re careful about lot separation. They collect coffee cherry alongside supplier name, original location, and quantity and keep thorough records as the coffee moves through processing.

Most farms have dirt-road access, so at harvest time producers transport bags of cherry by motorcycle, horse, or donkey to the nearest collection center. These bags then travel by truck to a central collection center. In general, transport between farms and collection centers is relatively simple here.

Arbegona’s main source of income is coffee, which producers grow on very small farms ranging from 0.1 to 2 hectares. They usually intercrop with false banana trees as shade for the coffee trees. Fertilization is ultra-rare in this area, although the soil is naturally rich.

The people of Arbegona belong to the Sidamo culture and speak various dialects of the Sidamo language.
The traditions of their native culture are still very present in producers’ daily life.

Life in Arbegona can be idyllic in some ways, but equally complicated in others. Since many farms are remote, access to clean water, electricity, and school for children is a constant challenge. That means children from the most distant farms often start working from a very young age. Opportunities are very few in the area, but migrating to other cities is not a great option for young people in the area due to the large education gaps between their region and the city. Many young people decide to stay on their parents’ farms or buy neighboring farms and continue dedicating themselves to coffee for the rest of their lives.

There are still producers in Arbegona who value coffee and want to preserve their ancient agricultural knowledge for generations to come.