ETHIOPIA | SHAKISO GUJI | ORGANIC NATURAL

The Kayon Mountain Coffee Farm covers 500 hectares with about 300 hectares planted in coffee, and has been owned and operated by Ismel Hassen and his family since 2012. It is located 510 kilometers south of Addis Ababa, and the property crosses the border of two villages—Taro and Sewana—located in the Orogmia region, in the Guji zone of the Shakiso district of Ethiopia.

Ismael oversees a staff of 25 permanent full-time and 300 seasonal employees, and the farm management offers free transportation services as well as financial support for building schools and administration buildings for the community. The farm competes with a nearby mining village for seasonal workers, so Ismael and his family tend to pay higher wages to their pickers in order to incentivize them returning year after year.

Kayon Mountain farm has a nursery on-site, and utilizes shade (gravilla, accacia, and other indigenous trees) to protect the coffee as well as for creating compost to fertilize naturally. Ismel is meticulous about not only the structure and management of the farm itself, but also the harvesting and processing.