Adissu Alichaye Gr. 1 Natural

Addisu Alichaye comes from a family with long history in growing coffee. He used to sell his coffees to brokers or the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX). In the past, when he had to do business with brokers, he felt there is no transparency in the prices and there were not much trust between parties involved. He was not satisfied and didn’t like how ECX mixed all his coffees under a catchall terms like Kochere or Yirgacheffe. 

Thanks to the recent changes in exporting regulations, he was able to seize the opportunity and join Lalisaa project to export his own coffee directly to roasters. His goal is to continue working with Sucafina Ethiopia to improve the cup quality so he can better support his family. His farm located about 13 kilometer south of the town of Yirgacheffe. 

This Naturally processed was dried on African beds made from bamboo. Adissu floats his cherry to remove any under- or overripes. Cherry sundries for approximately 21 days. Each day has about 7 hours of sunlight on average.  Cherry is frequently turned and sorted to remove damaged cherry while drying. 

Lalisaa is a term used to describe something that is flourishing and growing. Our Lalisaa coffees, initiated by Sucafina staff, began with the recognition that the supply chain in Ethiopia was failing to benefit smallholder farmers or reward them for producing quality coffee. 

The program encourages strong growing practices, rewards the production of quality coffee and helps farmers take control of their part of the supply chain by partnering directly with smallholders.  

New farmers are onboarded each year for a training program that is intended to help farmers improve yields and quality while also accessing new markets and financial services. Farmers in the program participate in a wide range of activities including designing, and later revising, a farm management plan, accessing financing for larger farm projects and more. 

Currently, Lalissa is compromised of 97 farmers located within the acclaimed coffee-producing regions of Kochere, Gedeb, Yirgacheffe, Shakiso, Bule Hora and Sidama. In addition to working with farmers to improve quality and yield, Sucafina Ethiopia is, through Lalisaa, making introductions between roasters and farmers. By bringing roasters to visit farmers and begin discussions, Lalisaa coffees are helping make connections and developing relationships between farmers and their potential clients. This will enable direct trade relationships that can benefit both farmers and roasters.

Grades in Ethiopia depend on visual inspection for defects and on cup quality. Grade 1 is considered the highest quality coffee. Grade 1 and 2 are considered specialty coffee, grades 3-9 are classified as commercial coffee. Grade 1 is free of cup faults and taints and has zero quakers.