Oromo Coffee Company

The Oromo Coffee Company is a unique social enterprise, the first ever community owned direct trading coffee business.Owned and managed by a group of Oromo people, originally from the Oromia Region of Ethiopia and now living in Ashton under Lyne, Greater Manchester, the OCC sources Fairtrade certified coffee directly from The Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (OCFCU), a co-operative union of smallholder farmers in Ethiopia.

The OCFCU was established in 1999 and now comprises 129 cooperatives, with 128,361 households involved. It supplies coffee for household names across the globe and is featured in the award winning film-documentary ‘Black Gold’. The OCFCU works to trade collectively, improve quality and gain a stronger position in the world market to improve the livelihoods of its co-operative members. The extra income gained though selling Fairtrade certified coffee to a number of international customers has allowed it to invest in things that benefit the whole community, such as more and better school facilities, medical equipment and clinic maintenance and clean water supplies for villages. OCFCU needs to build its sales of coffee at a decent price to customers across the world to keep investing in these kinds of life-changing projects, but all the sales of Fairtrade coffee through the OCC will contribute to this, and that’s an important motivation for the people running the OCC here in the UK.

In England, The Oromo Coffee Company aims to:

• Work towards ‘direct trade’ between Oromo communities in Ethiopia and the UK, reducing supply chains and maximising profits to be used by both communities.
• Strive for better ethical trading practices and prices for farmers.
• Create employment and training opportunities for Oromos both in the UK and in Ethiopia.
• Foster the pride and self-esteem of UK Oromos.
• Forge strong relationships and business opportunities between UK Oromos and the indigenous UK community.

Teshome and Abiyot, who help run the OCC, explain:

“We came to the UK as refugees in 2008 with the United Nations Gateway project. We didn’t want to go to the job centre or take benefits. We wanted to get training and skills ourselves…We couldn’t get a job because to get a job here you need British skills, but we have different skills in our country. So we tried to explain to people: our friends, local people, people in the local church. We discussed things with them and came up with the idea of starting a coffee company.”

Abiyot also talks of how the coffee sold here in the UK is so important to farmers in Ethiopia:

“A lot of opportunities have been gained for the farmers. People’s lives are better. And now they are getting a better price the quality of coffee is improving.”

The establishment of the OCC has also been an inspiration to others who have had to flee their country as refugees. As Teshome says:

“Our company is a good example for refugee people. It has taught us that things are possible.”

The OCC has put Oromo coffee and its heritage in the spotlight. The Oromos running the OCC want to spread the word about the Oromo people; their lives, history and culture, and their centuries old association with coffee. Dr. Getahun Bero, who is on the board of the OCC, explains:

“The name Oromo Coffee Company is important as before no-one knew the origin of the history of coffee, but coffee comes from Oromia. It is the main cash currency for Ethiopia.”

The OCC logo reflects this long history: the colours are taken from the Oromo flag and the tree, called an ‘Odaa’, represents the tree that people gather under to drink coffee, talk and resolve conflict. Teshome and Abiyot elaborate:

“Oromo is the birthplace of coffee. The name ‘coffee’ comes from ‘kaffa’ in Ethiopia. Everyone in Ethiopia knows about coffee. In our country, the Oromo people use coffee for many different things. It has been used as a food since before the fifth century, and we drink it like everyone else. It is used as a peacekeeping mechanism, at an Oromo coffee ceremony where coffee is brewed then everyone is called together to pray, and try to bring peace. It’s also used as spiritual nourishment. Coffee is prayed with three times a day; before work, midday and in the evening. At the weekend, instead of young people going to pubs to drink, young people come together to drink coffee on Sundays. The young and their elders mix and teach their history and skills.”

The Oromo Coffee Company sells coffee in large quantities to businesses, event organisers and more, offering discount incentives for larger orders. In addition, 227g bags of both beans and freshly ground are available via online stockist Jurang.

For more information, visit:

Oromo Coffee Company: www.oromocoffee.org

Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union: www.oromiacoffeeunion.org

Black Gold: www.blackgoldmovie.com