by Xinhua writers Habtamu Worku, Liu Fangqiang
ADDIS ABABA, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Scattered in the misty, yet sun-drenched highlands of southwestern Ethiopia, premium organic coffee cherries are hand-picked, sun-dried, and carefully processed before they embark on a long journey to China, where a rapidly growing appetite for specialty coffee is cementing an expanding commercial bridge between the two nations.
FROM SEED TO CUP
Every morning, Alemu Haile steps into the lush expanse of Awo Coffee's 200-hectare plantation in the Gimbo District of the southwest region of Ethiopia to oversee coffee growing and processing.
"My daily routine involves coordinating the hand-picking of coffee cherries, ensuring that workers carefully select only the vibrant red cherries at the absolute peak of their ripeness," Haile told Xinhua in a recent interview. He emphasized that balancing the proper amount of sunlight for the coffee trees is critical to ensure the cherries ripen uniformly during the harvest season, which normally falls in October.
Once harvested, the cherries move to post-processing under Haile's supervision, where trained personnel perform rigorous manual sorting to filter out immature, insect-damaged and deformed beans. To guarantee export standards, the farm also deploys a water flotation technique that instantly separates and discards any inherently inferior beans, ensuring only top-tier selections advance to the long, raised drying beds.
The sun-drying and processing phase, which often lasts for three weeks, is also considered a "very critical stage," mainly because coffee beans readily absorb tastes and aromas from their surroundings. To ensure quality, Haile excercises maximum caution to protect the sensitive beans from dust, soil, or any other external exposure.
EXPANDING FOOTPRINT IN CHINA
Much of this meticulously processed high-quality coffee is subsequently shipped to China by Awo Coffee, one of Ethiopia's fast-growing coffee processors and exporters.
Named after the Amharic word for "Yes," Awo Coffee began its exports to China about 12 years ago right when the business was founded. The company has since witnessed a steadily expanding market presence in China, with annual shipments surging from modest tens of tonnes to over 200 tonnes last year, the company's General Manager Tesfaye Gebru told Xinhua.
To address evolving consumer preferences in China, Kaleab Fekad, Awo Coffee's marketing manager, noted that the company has in recent years diversified its product offerings beyond raw beans to include roasted options and packaged powdered coffee, sourced both from its own farm and through collaborations with smallholder farmers.
"Since we began exporting raw coffee beans and later expanded into processed and powdered coffee, our export figures have grown rapidly and at a very large scale over the years. Our brand is also getting more and more awareness among Chinese consumers," Fekad said.
Looking ahead, Awo Coffee has formulated comprehensive growth plans aimed at scaling up its operational capacity in China, while honoring its rich heritage of authentic Ethiopian premium Arabica coffee flavor profiles.
The company's executives highlighted that establishing strong partnerships and joint ventures with Chinese counterparts and active participation in major exhibitions are vital to further penetrate the vast and fast-expanding Chinese market.
CHINA EMERGES AS VITAL MARKET
Beyond individual enterprise ambitions, the Chinese market increasingly holds vital importance for the broader Ethiopian coffee sector, functioning as an essential economic lifeline for millions of smallholder farmers across the East African nation.
Industry experts attribute this soaring demand primarily to younger Chinese consumers.
During the 2025/26 Ethiopian fiscal year, Ethiopia exported 47,836 tonnes of coffee to China and earned 347 million dollars, up by 40 percent and 58 percent respectively year on year, according to official data.
Currently ranked as the third-largest destination for Ethiopian coffee exports following Saudi Arabia and Germany, China is viewed by Ethiopian authorities and coffee-related businesses as a fast-growing market.
"We are trying to tap into the big market opportunity for Ethiopian coffee in China through vigorous promotion and exporting organic coffee to meet the growing demand of Chinese consumers, especially among the youth," Shafi Umer, Deputy Director General of Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority, said.
Widely regarded as the birthplace of Arabica coffee, Ethiopia stands as one of Africa's top producers and exporters of this drink. The country's coffee is internationally renowned for its quality and diverse flavor profiles. The sector remains a major pillar of the East African nation's agriculture-based economy.
