Hadeso is a remote woreda in Ethiopia’s Guji region. Around 500 farmers supply the local washing station, with farms located 10 minutes to an hour away, mostly connected by dirt roads.
Coffee is grown intercropped with false banana trees for shade and soil fertility. Since producers deliver coffee in cherry form, they do not produce pulp waste on the farm. Instead, collection centers prepare organic compost and distribute it to the producers.
The coffee is fermented in cement tanks for 36 to 48 hours and then dried for five to seven days under plastic parabolic covers, depending on the weather.
Most farmers belong to the Gedeo culture and speak the Gedeo language, with strong traditions of respect toward animals. Due to the remoteness of many farms, families often lack access to clean water, electricity, and schools, leading some children to start working early and limiting migration opportunities. As a result, many young people stay in farming, either continuing their families land or acquiring neighbouring farms.
Hadeso is highlighted as a key region for Red Fox, with ongoing improvements in farming practices and coffee quality each year.
