A study case on coffee (Coffea arabica): Limu Coffe - IRD
A study case on coffee (Coffea arabica): Limu Coffe - IRD
A study case on coffee (Coffea arabica): Limu Coffe - IRD
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in the country, as the Jima Research Center resp<strong>on</strong>sible for the nati<strong>on</strong>al <strong>coffee</strong> research<br />
programme (Petit, 2007). The latter is leading <strong>coffee</strong> selecti<strong>on</strong> all around Ethiopia.<br />
Producers<br />
<strong>Coffe</strong>e producers include small-scale <strong>coffee</strong> farmers, <strong>coffee</strong> farmers’ service<br />
cooperatives, private investors, and state <strong>coffee</strong> producing enterprises.<br />
Small-scale <strong>coffee</strong> farmers are estimated at 1.3 milli<strong>on</strong> producing 95% of total<br />
Ethiopian <strong>coffee</strong> and are divided into poor, middle and better-off households. These<br />
households are men headed but can be women headed. Some works, lead in <strong>Limu</strong> Kosa<br />
woreda in the framework of a general <strong>coffee</strong> activities report (12 th June 2009), illustrate that<br />
for 16,200 male households, 11 are female households.<br />
<strong>Coffe</strong>e labourers/workers (in pulperies, hulleries, transport, plantati<strong>on</strong>s, etc...) are a<br />
heterogeneous category which doesn’t appear in any data. As it is in Mana and Goma<br />
woredas (neighbouring <strong>Limu</strong> Kosa and which <strong>coffee</strong> is traded as <strong>Limu</strong> <strong>coffee</strong> through the<br />
Ethiopia Commodity Exchange or by the Oromia <strong>Coffe</strong>e Farmers Cooperatives Uni<strong>on</strong>),<br />
during at least the period September to November, harvests of red <strong>coffee</strong> beans, maize, teff<br />
and sorghum all take place generating a high labour demand. Migrant labourers from areas to<br />
the south of Jima z<strong>on</strong>e, particularly of the SNNPR come for work, as well as the local poor<br />
(Save the children UK, 2003). Especially local students work as <strong>coffee</strong> labourers slashing<br />
during school holidays in investors or state farms plantati<strong>on</strong>s. State farms labourers are almost<br />
exclusively women and teenager girls (planting seedlings, slashing, pruning). Most of agroprocessing<br />
employees are also women. During harvesting time, children are also picking<br />
cherries in state farms. In Suntu State Farm, the daily labourer salary was 0.35 birr per kg of<br />
red cherries picked in 10 th October 2009. One single labourer works about eight hours per<br />
day, and harvests approximately 30 kg per day in October whereas, during high seas<strong>on</strong> in<br />
November/December, the labourer picks between 50 and 60 kg per day.<br />
Illustrati<strong>on</strong> 34: Daily labourers in state farm and investor farm (Bossolasco, August & October 2009)<br />
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