History Of Coffee And Coffee Production In Ethiopia

1. Historical back ground of Coffee and Coffee production in Ethiopia.

1.1. Historical back ground Coffee has its history as far back of the 9th century .It is believed to be originated in Ethiopia, particularly in the south western parts of the country called Kaffa (Wilson p-45) . The etymology of coffee presumed to be taken was from kaffa where it was originated.

The word coffee in Kaffa language, Kafi-nono, is called “Buno.” Bunno. Thus the Bun Bune or Bunna that stand for coffee, in Ethiopia languages are derived from the Kaffa word’’ Buno’’. ( BEKELE WOLDEMARIAM P5) . It was from Kaffa that in early time the use of the extract of the ‘’Kaffa bean “spread over the entire Ethiopian Highlands ( Gordon wringley pa1)) . Historical source

K.C. WILLSON p 4 ). Studies indicate that thanks to the country’s favorable ecological factors such as suitable altitude, optimum temperatures, appropriate planting materials, and fertile soil.). (Alemayehu p 6) , coffee grows in Ethiopia in several places at various altitudes ranging from 550-2750metrs above sea level. More than any other country, Ethiopia has abroad genetic diversity among its coffee verities. It is the center of origin and source of genetic diversity of the Arabica coffee plant to the world. Nine different coffee species are cultivated in the four region of Ethiopia, all with distinctive tastes, size, shapes and colors. It is reported that the C. Arabica shrubs in Ethiopia rainforest have more genetic materials than the commercial cultivars used to produce most coffee around the world. The C.arabica shrubs occur naturally in moist evergreen undergrowth of the Ethiopian Afromonate rain forest between 1000 and 2000 meters above sea level. This made Ethiopia the third largest C.arabica coffee producer next to Brazile and

Thus, Ethiopia remains the largest producer of coffee in Africa and is the fifth largest coffee producer in the World next to Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, and Indonesia, that contributes about 4.2 percent of the total coffee production. KASAHUN BANTE P8-9) Coffee in Ethiopia is predominantly produced by small holder farmers on average farms of less than 2 hectares. These farmers either used to collect coffee from forests, semi forest, or plantations. Around 95% of the counters total production comes from these small holder farmers while the remaining five percent is grown on modern commercial farms. KASAHUN BANTE P10)

When comes to Economic aspect, coffee is the second most traded product in the world after petroleum. As the country’s economy is dependent on agriculture, which accounts for about 45 percent of the GDP, 90 percent of exports and 80 percent of total employment, coffee is one of the most important commodities to the Ethiopian economy. It has always been the country’s most important cash crop and largest export commodity. (Zelalem Tesera p