Yirgacheffe coffee is highly regarded worldwide for its unique flavor. Coffee produced in the Gedeo Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region in southern Ethiopia is classified as part of the Yirgacheffe production area. While coffee production only truly began in the 1950s, making it a relatively new area in terms of coffee culture, its distinctive, elegant flavors reminiscent of tea and jasmine led to its distinction from Sidamo (another coffee-producing region) around 1980, a status it maintains to this day. People believe its special flavor is a gift of the fertile black soil and weather conditions suitable for coffee, and it is carefully cultivated in nature, overlooking the beautiful Lake Abaya, surrounded by rivers and forests.
Ethiopian Administrative Divisions
Region: Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (formerly), Sidama Region, Oromia Region, etc.
Zone: Gedeo, Guji, Sidama, etc.
Woreda (District/Town): For Gedeo Zone, this includes Yirgacheffe, Gedeb, Kochere, etc.
Kebere (Village): Konga, Idido, Hahusah, etc. (Originally a grouping of 200 farmers from the communist era, so it may not always correspond to a strict administrative district name).
*Yirgacheffe as a producing region refers to coffee produced throughout the Gedeo Zone, while Yirgacheffe as an administrative district refers to one of the Woredas within the Gedeo Zone.
Hirut Shallo
Ms. Hirut Shallo and her husband, Samuel Demisse, have been involved in coffee production since 2019. Her husband, Samuel, has a career that includes various public offices, notably providing significant support to the exporter YCFCU during his time as the chief executive of the Gedeo Zone. After his career in public service, he focused on exporting and supplying coffee with his wife, Hirut, and their three children.
In 2020, they obtained an export license as a single estate producer, and their farm was named after Hirut. With the help of their family of five and a few workers, they harvest and process coffee using traditional Ethiopian methods.
They particularly focus on natural process coffee, which generates no wastewater or environmentally harmful waste, and the pulp can be used as fertilizer. They are committed to this traditional natural process, which minimizes environmental impact and utilizes the wisdom of their ancestors, carefully carrying it out as a couple.
Currently, their farm spans 8 hectares. With the help of their family and local community, they carefully harvest and spend time on post-harvest sorting, meticulously drying the coffee for three weeks with repeated raking and picking.
Konga Trading
Konga Trading is a coffee export company specializing in the Yirgacheffe region, established in 2020. The founder, Mr. Takale, served as the general manager of the Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperatives Union (YCFCU), one of Ethiopia's largest, for 12 years. He is one of Yirgacheffe's leaders, with a deep understanding of Yirgacheffe coffee production and its farmers. Mr. Takale himself is from Konga village in Yirgacheffe, Gedeo Zone. He established Konga Trading, stepping away from the cooperative framework, to shine a spotlight on the dedication and efforts of the coffee producers in this land and to create even more excellent Yirgacheffe coffee hand-in-hand with farmers. Alongside several farmers who share his goal of producing higher quality and wonderfully flavored coffee, he is now venturing into providing new, high-quality Yirgacheffe coffee from single estates.
