If ever you needed to be reminded of why you buy Fairtrade coffee then you must watch Black Gold, a film make four years ago about the coffee industry. The documentary follows Tadesse Meskela, General Manager of the Oromia Coffee Farmers Co-operative Union, as he searches to find new markets and a better price for his coffee.
Since the film, awareness of the plight of coffee growers has grown. In the film we see a cooperative struggling to find the money to build a school, but their website today shows the improvement over the last few years – http://www.oromiacoffeeunion.org.
Below is a trailer for the film:
ethiopian coffee
Black Gold
July 15th, 2010 | 1 Comment
Pictures from Ethiopia – Addis Abbaba
May 6th, 2010 | Comments Off
Our Ethiopian Coffee comes from the Sidama Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (SCFCU). Here are some of the terrific pictures taken in Addis Abbaba.
Ethiopia’s Passion
April 20th, 2010 | Comments Off
The Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony
Ethiopians take coffee very seriously and the drink is an integral part of their culture. The Coffee Ceremony is the centrepiece of their social life.
Performed by the hostess, the coffee beans are first roasted in a flat pan or brazier over hot coals. The aromatic scent will then be wafted towards the guests before the coffee is ground using a pestle and mortar.
The brewing process uses a Jebena, a special pottery boiling pot. The coffee boils up through the neck and is poured into a container to cool, a process which is repeated a number of times and strained through course cloth. The grounds are brewed three times; the first time is called, awel, the second kale’i and the third, bereka.
The hostess then expertly pours the coffee from about a foot above the cups, adding aroma to the taste.
The Origins of Coffee
March 30th, 2010 | 1 Comment
Legend has it that coffee was first discovered by a goat herder named Kaldi.
