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 ETHIOPIA FACTS ABOUT ETHIOPIA ETHIOPIAN COFFEE |
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Settled agriculture began in Ethiopia some 2,000 years ago. Since time immemorial, coffee arabica has been grown in the wild forests of the south-western massive highlands of the Kaffa and Buno districts of the country. Ethiopia is the primary centre of origin and genetic diversity of the Arabica coffee plant, earlier known as jasminum arabicum laurifolia.
With coffee thus a commodity crop earlier than 1500, Ethiopia is the oldest coffee exporter in the world, though external invasions and internal conflicts have at times had a negative impact on the country's coffee export history. Coffee export in Harar and Gerri goes back to earlier than 1810. In 1838, Rupell recorded the export of 100 quintals of Enarea-coffee (now Liumu-Seka, Jimma) via Massawa. In the 19th century, tow coffee types, "specialty coffee", were exported as first and second grade Harari coffee and Abyssinia coffee to London, Marseilles, New York and trieste. Ethiopian Muslim merchants transported coffee and other goods in caravans of mules, camels and donkeys. Export was dominated and facilitated by foreigners of more than 140 different nations, including Greeks, Armenians, Germans, Belgians, Indians, Lebanese, Turks and Yemenis. Coffee classification and grading systems in Ethiopia were developed and licensed for the first time in 1952 and then modified in 1955. Ethiopian coffee certification began after the establishment of the National Coffee Board of Ethiopia in 1957. The NCBE's aims were to control and coordinate producers , traders, and exporters interests and to improve the quality of Ethiopian coffee. In 1960, Ethiopia became a member of the Inter-African Coffee Organization . The same year, it also became a member of the International Coffee Organization and allocated a 2.5 per cent share of the global market.
Coffee is the most important agricultural commodity in the world, and is worth up to $14 billion annually. More than 80 countries, including Ethiopia, cultivate coffee, which is exported as the raw, roasted or soluble product to more than 165 countries worldwide. More than 121 countries export and /or re-export coffee. More than 50 developing countries, 25 of them in Africa, depend on coffee as an export, with 17 countries earning 25 per cent of their foreign exchange from coffee. The agriculture-based Ethiopian economy is highly dependent on coffee arabica as it contributes more than 60 per cent of the country's foreign exchange earnings. No other product or service in Ethiopia has earned as much. The labor intensive tree crop also provides much employment in rural areas and is the means of livelihood for over 15 million people in Ethiopia. Thus, as well as being an important export, coffee plays a vital role in both cultural and socio-economic life of the country.
Ethiopian coffee is an enjoyable item among beverages used today. Still interesting is the tradition that gives coffee a sacred place in the daily life of Ethiopians. Tradition has it that a shepherd of Kaffa once discovered that his goats were overly excited, playing and dancing on their hind legs. He was curious to see some mangled branches with red berries of the coffee tree hanging nearby. He ate a few berries and ran home where his wife sent him to tell the same to the monks. Thinking of the coffee beans as sinful drug, the monks threw them into fire. This produced the characteristic smell of coffee we experience today. They also crushed some beans and mixed the substance in boiling water. The aroma produced from this attracted other monks who enjoyed the energy of this strange new drink, and thus coffee became a known commodity.
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Ethiopian Coffee 
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