Kochere Cooperative

Kochere is one of the small woredas inside Yirgacheffe — a coffee district whose name has become a flavor description on its own, shorthand for the bright fruit and floral profiles that put Ethiopian coffee on the specialty map.

The cooperative we work with is run by women — committee, processing leads, sorting floor. They built the structure in 2014 after years of selling through middlemen who took the margin. Now the cooperative manages its own washing station, sets its own quality standards, and pays members based on what each lot actually earns.

We buy the Natural process. Cherries dry slowly on raised beds with the fruit still on the bean, which is what gives the cup that bright blueberry-and-jasmine character. A portion of every bag funds the cooperative's training programs for new members and the reforestation work they've been doing along the nearby riverbanks. Built by women, growing year after year.