Ethiopia- Qore Biloya (Washed)

A few miles south of Yirgacheffe lies the district of Kochere, and while the geography may be similar, it is an entity all its own. Built in 2003, the Qore Biloya washing station has been operating for many years, and in 2018 passed into new ownership. The station employs seasonal workers during coffee harvest to help sort and process the ripe cherries.

The washing station processes both washed and natural coffees, with around 140 raised, mesh-lined drying beds to receive the beans once they’ve been carefully sorted and processed. Qore Biloya station produces both washed coffees and naturals. Natural coffee beans spend an average of 21 days in the intense Ethiopian sun, turned daily by workers to facilitate even drying. Once optimal moisture level is reached and the beans are stabilized, these natural coffees are dry hulled to remove the dried coffee fruit. 

At this point, both washed and natural coffees in the parchment stage are bagged and transported to the company’s processing plant in the capital city of Addis Ababa. This huge facility is equipped with modern machines for processing— cleaning, polishing, screening, color sorting and more. Our Catalyst Trade team on the ground in Ethiopia follows the coffee through all its stages, pulling a sample from every single bag as it is filled to verify quality and stability, then overseeing the loading of the container for its journey to the US.