Uncommon – Butegana, Burundi 250g

Our first ever coffee from Burundi! Burundi has long been overlooked, often overshadowed by neighboring, East African specialty coffee-producing powerhouses. This coffee certainly squashes that notion. Expect a zingy cup with notes of passionfruit, blackberry, & kombucha.

This coffee was sourced through Greenco, a close partner with Sucafina. Greenco works with 3,000 smallholder farmers who deliver cherry to the Butegana washing station in Kayanza, and support producers all along the production chain. They started their work in 2015, and have dominated all Cup of Excellence competitions in Burundi ever since.

Yeast Inoculation

“Adding selected yeasts in specific quantities allows for a more controlled fermentation as well as greater consistency between lots, which is very useful for a wet mill that is receiving cherry from multiple sources over a long period.”

Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Cima) was specially developed for coffee production over a four-year period of research and trials. Trials in various regions and environments showed that Cima is well suited to better control the fermentation process efficiently and to increase the cup quality. The yeast is able to control the fermentation process and reduce the risk of spoilage, while it’s specific metabolism and its proficiency allow for the expression of fresh and fruity characteristics even at cold temperatures when fermenting at higher altitudes.

Greenco

“Currently, Greenco has 13 washing stations all located in Kayanza in the north of Burundi.”.

Greenco’s overall impact through these 13 central washing stations (CWS) extends to over 15,210 coffee producing households. The producers receive support from the Greenco CWS managers, who are all agronomic engineers, and who work with young agronomy graduates to provide farmer training and manage washing stations. They’ve established nurseries and sell the seedlings to farmers at or below cost. Greenco have also equipped all washing stations with water treatment facilities, solar panels and batteries. The station has ponds to purify the wastewater from processing before flowing back in the river network. The solar panels provide energy for computers, lighting and smartphones while at the washing station, farmers can also get organic fertiliser from reconverted coffee pulp.