beanscenemag.com.au 75anticipates the current Ethiopian crop
year – October 2018 to September 2019- will reach a record high output of 7250
60-kilogram bags. Bruck says the benefits of
this bumper crop have been partially offset
by low prices linked to the New York Stock
Exchange, though not to the extent of other
countries.
“Producers have by and large done OK.
Most coffee is paid for upfront and the price
risk is taken on by the exporters, who need
to decide if they’ll sell the coffee forward
or hold onto it and wait for a better price,”
Bruck says. “Specialty coffee is becoming
a larger focus for farmers and processors
because it’s more rewarding to produce
that higher quality. It’s also a growing
market on the consumer side, where people
are becoming more aware of quality and
conscious of how they pay for their coffee.”
Ethiopia is particularly well regarded
for its natural processed coffees. Bruck says
mills and processors slow dry their coffee,
allowing the beans a significant amount
of time to absorb sugar compounds as the
water dries from the cherry.
“The naturally processed coffee from
Ethiopia is sun-dried on open beds. It
is not accelerated as is the case with
artificial drying. You get coffees that
are very sweet, due to the sugar being
absorbed into the bean, and maintain
the fruity characters Ethiopian coffees
are known for,” Bruck says. “When you
wash coffee, you leave a lot of those
compounds in the water, highlighting the
coffee’s acidity. Whereas in naturally dried
Ethiopian coffee, the sweetness and fruity
complexity really stand out.”
While the nation has maintained a
traditional stance when it comes to coffee
production and processing, new ideas
on how other countries achieve their
higher quality levels are slowly gaining
legs in Ethiopia. Volcafe has worked with
producers on the ground on how to best
utilise this information.
“Coffee production is driven by
knowledge. People are beginning to
understand that quality and consistency can
only be achieved when you have control
over the work that goes into producing
and processing coffee. Standards that have
been introduced around the world are
slowly trickling into Ethiopia. For us, it’s a
question of accelerating those practices and
spreading them across various parts of the
country,” Brucks says.
Alongside agricultural training and
support, Bruck supports the Ethiopian
market by being a prominent buyer and
providing access to the international
market. This may not seem overly apparent
to a consuming country like Australia, but
as Bruck puts it, “when you are here, and
see the limitations on market access, you
understand the importance of Volcafe’s
presence in Ethiopia”.
“We’ve been present in Ethiopia for
more than 50 years. However, with the
establishment of the commodity exchange,
engagement with a lot of producers became
quite difficult. Rules around the exchange
were relaxed last year, so we are seriously
thinking about how to continue where
we left off,” Bruck says.“In the meantime, we do what we
can to enable producers and processors
to manage their finances and be better
business institutions, train their producers
for higher productivity, and improve
the quality of their coffee so they can
earn more. The whole thing works for
producers only if they can generate the
income to not just survive but thrive.”
Cofi-Com has been a long-time
supporter of Ethiopian coffee, with our
Operations and Trading Manager Dariusz
Lewandowski making an annual trip to the
country along with some of our roasting
partners. It’s an opportunity to meet farmers
and producers, assess the new season and
see what’s happening at the farms and
mills. The time spent with Bruck is always
instructive and helpful for us. He knows
what we are looking for taste-wise and the
cupping table is full of reminders what’s
special about Ethiopian coffee.
As Bruck explains: “This is how a lot of
meaningful engagement starts, when people
on the buying side of coffee make the effort
to come to origin, familiarise themselves
with the country, and learn firsthand by
engaging with people on the ground.
We are seeing that this quite significantly
enables young, hardworking producers to
sell their products to the Australian market,
which can be quite demanding from a
quality point of view.”
As high demand for quality Ethiopian
coffee continues, having partners as
passionate and experienced as Bruck and
his team on the ground is invaluable.BruBruBruBruBruBruBruBruBruBruBruBruBruBruBrruruuuuuck ck ckck ck ckckckck ckckck ck k kk kFikFikFikFikFikFikFikFikFiFikFikFikFikFFirururururururururururururuuuofof ofof ooof ofofof of ofof ofof of of fffVolVolVolVolVoVVolVolVoVoVVolVVoVVoVVoVVVoVVVVVVVVVoVVoVolVVolVolVolVoVolVolVVVVocafcafcafcafcafcafcafcafcafcafcafcacafcafccacafcacafccaccacafaaaafafaffe we we we we we we we we we we we wee we weweeewe we we weeeee wwwwwworkorkorkorkorkorkorkorkorkorkorkorkorkooororkoorkrkrkkks ws wsws ws ws ws wsws wss ws ws wsswswssssws wwwwwwwwwwwwwithithithithithithithithithithithithithithititithithithithithithithththththththtththhhhhhhhhhfffffafafafafffafffafffafaffafafaffaaaaarmermermermermermrmermermermermermermermermemmemmmmmmeeeeersrrsrsrsrrrs rsrrsrsrsrs rrs rs rsrsrsssandandaandanandaandananandananananandanddexexexexexexexexexxxxxxxxxxporporpopoporporpoporporporporppporporporporppoporporpporporporpppopporpppopoporporppopppotertertertertertetterterterterterterterteterererererereerrrrrrrrrrrrs s sssssss sss sssss
in iin iniin in in ininiin in iinin inininin in innnEthEthEthEthEthEthEthEthEtEthEthEthEEtEEthEthEtEthttiopiopiopiopiopiopiopiopioiopiopioiopiopioioiioiopiopiopopopopopppiaia iaia ia ia iaiia iaia iaiiaiaia ia aa atoto to toto to to tototo tottototttto to ooimpimpimpimpimpimpimpimpimpimpimpmpmpmpmpmpmpmpmpppppppppppprovrovrovrovrovrovrovrovrovrovrorovrovrovrovrovrovrovrovooovovovvvvvvece ce ce ce ce ce cececececece ce cece cee e ce e ce ceccccccoffofoffofoffoffoffooffoffoffoffoffoffoffoffooffoffoffoffoffoffoffofffffffffffffffffffffffffee eeeeeeee ee ee ee eeeeee eeeeeeee e e e eeeqquaququaquaquaqquaquaquaqquqquqqquaqquaquaquauulitlitlitlitlitlitlitlililitlitlitiyy ayy ayy ay ay yay ay and nd nd nd ndnddmmarmmarmarmarmarmarmarmarmarmmarmarmamarmamamarmarmararaaraararaarrrrkeketketketketketkeketketketketketkkeketketketkkeketketkeketeeeeteeacacacacacacacacacacacacacacacaacacacacacaacacacacaaaaaccccccccccccccccccescescescecescescescescescecescescescescescccescescecescescceceseeeesessss.s.s.s.s.s.s.s.s.s.sss.ss.ss.sss...beanscenemag.com.au 75anticipates the current Ethiopian crop
year – October 2018 to September 2019
- will reach a record high output of 7250
60-kilogram bags. Bruck says the benefits of
this bumper crop have been partially offset
by low prices linked to the New York Stock
Exchange, though not to the extent of other
countries.
“Producers have by and large done OK.
Most coffee is paid for upfront and the price
risk is taken on by the exporters, who need
to decide if they’ll sell the coffee forward
or hold onto it and wait for a better price,”
Bruck says. “Specialty coffee is becoming
a larger focus for farmers and processors
because it’s more rewarding to produce
that higher quality. It’s also a growing
market on the consumer side, where people
are becoming more aware of quality and
conscious of how they pay for their coffee.”
Ethiopia is particularly well regarded
for its natural processed coffees. Bruck says
mills and processors slow dry their coffee,
allowing the beans a significant amount
of time to absorb sugar compounds as the
water dries from the cherry.
“The naturally processed coffee from
Ethiopia is sun-dried on open beds. It
is not accelerated as is the case with
artificial drying. You get coffees that
are very sweet, due to the sugar being
absorbed into the bean, and maintain
the fruity characters Ethiopian coffees
are known for,” Bruck says. “When you
wash coffee, you leave a lot of those
compounds in the water, highlighting the
coffee’s acidity. Whereas in naturally dried
Ethiopian coffee, the sweetness and fruity
complexity really stand out.”
While the nation has maintained a
traditional stance when it comes to coffee
production and processing, new ideas
on how other countries achieve their
higher quality levels are slowly gaining
legs in Ethiopia. Volcafe has worked with
producers on the ground on how to best
utilise this information.
“Coffee production is driven by
knowledge. People are beginning to
understand that quality and consistency can
only be achieved when you have control
over the work that goes into producing
and processing coffee. Standards that have
been introduced around the world are
slowly trickling into Ethiopia. For us, it’s a
question of accelerating those practices and
spreading them across various parts of the
country,” Brucks says.
Alongside agricultural training and
support, Bruck supports the Ethiopian
market by being a prominent buyer and
providing access to the international
market. This may not seem overly apparent
to a consuming country like Australia, but
as Bruck puts it, “when you are here, and
see the limitations on market access, you
understand the importance of Volcafe’s
presence in Ethiopia”.
“We’ve been present in Ethiopia for
more than 50 years. However, with the
establishment of the commodity exchange,
engagement with a lot of producers became
quite difficult. Rules around the exchange
were relaxed last year, so we are seriously
thinking about how to continue where
we left off,” Bruck says.“In the meantime, we do what we
can to enable producers and processors
to manage their finances and be better
business institutions, train their producers
for higher productivity, and improve
the quality of their coffee so they can
earn more. The whole thing works for
producers only if they can generate the
income to not just survive but thrive.”
Cofi-Com has been a long-time
supporter of Ethiopian coffee, with our
Operations and Trading Manager Dariusz
Lewandowski making an annual trip to the
country along with some of our roasting
partners. It’s an opportunity to meet farmers
and producers, assess the new season and
see what’s happening at the farms and
mills. The time spent with Bruck is always
instructive and helpful for us. He knows
what we are looking for taste-wise and the
cupping table is full of reminders what’s
special about Ethiopian coffee.
As Bruck explains: “This is how a lot of
meaningful engagement starts, when people
on the buying side of coffee make the effort
to come to origin, familiarise themselves
with the country, and learn firsthand by
engaging with people on the ground.
We are seeing that this quite significantly
enables young, hardworking producers to
sell their products to the Australian market,
which can be quite demanding from a
quality point of view.”
As high demand for quality Ethiopian
coffee continues, having partners as
passionate and experienced as Bruck and
his team on the ground is invaluable.a