Courtesy Oliver Stormshak
20i4
Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union.
The annual auction for Ethiopia’s best coffees broke the Cup of Excellence (COE) record in total sales with $1,348,690, topping the previous record of $830,245 from El Salvador in 2011, which had 42 lots for sale. The average price for the 28 coffees was $28 per pound, a new record at the COE auction. The 168 registered buyers from 33 countries bid 4,137 times for more than 5 hours to secure the winning coffees. The second round of top coffees had a total of 902 bids, a record number in the competition’s history.
The top-scoring coffee in this year’s Cup of Excellence competition sold at a staggering price of $185.10 per pound, or $407.00 per kilogram. This is the highest price ever recorded for an Ethiopian coffee. Half the lot was purchased by Maruyama Coffee Co., Ltd. from Japan, whose buying group consisted of Saza Coffee, Cometeer, Goodboybob Coffee Difference Coffee, and Harrods. The other half of the lot was purchased by Sarutahiko Coffee Inc. from Japan.
Nigusie Gemeda of Sidama, SNNPR was stunned to see the price paid for his coffee. “I have been a coffee farmer for a long time, but I am just learning the value of our coffee. I am so happy with the result. Never could I have imagined coffee would have sold with such price. Now I know there is a reason for coffee to be called ‘the green gold’,” he said.
“Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee and widely considered to be the producer of the most delicious coffees in the world, yet many of its farmers are among the poorest. This auction sends a message of hope that not only validates the investments—and associated risks—in quality but also serves as a reminder that the quality movement is here to stay” said Geoff Watts, vice president of coffee at US company Intelligentsia.
Intelligentsia bought the second highest coffee that belongs to Rumudamo Coffee PLC, from Sidama, SNNPR at $108.00 per pound. “Farmers are the heart, soul, and backbone of the specialty coffee industry but rarely get the recognition or, more importantly, the economic reward, that their work deserves. At a time when the quality coffee movement is facing severe existential threats and the world is in turmoil, it is especially invigorating to see [COE] pull off this event and deliver such a windfall economic boost to the people who need it most,” Watts added.
“It’s a powerful lesson and beyond what we could have had imagined. We sell our coffee for less than a dollar at times, and it’s been discouraging for growers. Now we see there is a market we can tap into if we can guarantee the quality,” said Ato Bogale Woledehana, general manager of Rumudamo Coffee Plc.
Courtesy of Keffa Coffee
Ethiopia Wush Wush raised beds for drying coffee.
The 35 out-grower farmers that supply coffee to Rumudamo are also excited about these prices. “None of us had heard of a coffee that sold at this amount. It’s a surprise for everybody,” said Ato Bogale. Rumudamo had another winning coffee in the auction that sold at $35.10 per pound.
The third highest price went to Testi Trading PLC at $66.60 per pound, sold to Black Gold Coffee Co., Ltd. from Taiwan. “We are pleased with the result,” said Ato Faysel Abdosh founder and manager of Testi.
Buyers expressed excitement to be part of the first Ethiopian auction. “It’s an honor to participate in the auction and especially in Ethiopia’s first auction. It feels monumental and we hope this becomes a tradition for years to come,” said Jon Allen of Onyx Coffee Lab in the US. The lab bought coffee from smallholder coffee grower Gare Ware Jilo of, Oromia at $21 per pound.
“This shows what happens when we invest in quality,” said Dr. Adugna Debela, director general of the Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority. “We have succeeded in the faces of challenging times. We had to make difficult decisions and bold moves to make the competition going despite the pandemic. Congratulations to all of our farmers.”
The selected exporter for the Cup of Excellence coffees has finished cleaning and vacuum packing all lots, and nearly 20,000 kilograms of coffee is ready for export to the highest bidders in 33 countries.
For more information on Cup of Excellence please visit the website.
For details on the auction results please visit this site.