Ethiopia Harvest 2025/26

What to expect from the new season?

Ethiopia’s 2025/26 coffee harvest brings notable changes in production, pricing, and availability. These dynamics make the season especially important for roasters planning their sourcing strategies.

Drawing on on-the-ground insights, this update explores harvest progress, processing trends, export prices, and regulatory developments shaping sourcing opportunities for roasters.

2025/26 at a glance

  • Strong outlook on great quality across all regions
  • Lower yield in southern regions (Sidama, Yirgacheffe, Guji, West-Arsi)
  • Higher yield in western regions (Limu, Kaffa, Benchmaji)
  • Production and labor costs rise significantly
  • Historic high cherry prices up to 250 ETB/kg
  • Sharp decrease in available EU organic certified coffee
  • More naturals, less washed coffee
  • High minimum export prices while NY market fluctuates
  • Innovation with new dry mills, experimental processing, and SCA Ethiopia
  • Smallholder producer empowerment

Timing, Quality, and Pricing

Delayed harvest cycle

While the harvest started two to three weeks later than usual, the last cherries from Ethiopia’s highest-altitude areas are now being picked. Producers and exporters report lower productivity in southern regions, while western Ethiopia is experiencing a bumper year with increased yields. Dry weather during peak harvest supported good drying conditions, and early quality indicators across all regions are positive. 

Pricing Uncertainty

Attention is now focused on moving coffee quickly to Addis Ababa. Rapid processing and export are key to preserving freshness and physical stability. Pricing dynamics remain complex. National Bank of Ethiopia minimum export prices have stayed relatively high, while the NY “C” market has fluctuated significantly in recent weeks and months. This divergence creates uncertainty around Ethiopia’s positioning within the global coffee market. 

South vs. West

Yirgacheffe, Guji, Sidama, and West-Arsi

While southern Ethiopia has long been the first choice for roasters, western regions are becoming an increasingly frequent alternative. The south remains quality-driven but is more densely populated, with rising land values and limited room for expansion. 

Limu, Jimma, Kaffa, and Benchmaji

Western Ethiopia was historically valued for more affordable, certified supply chains, often organized through cooperatives. Additionally, earlier shipment timelines also made the region attractive to buyers. This season, it is gaining renewed recognition for quality. Greater land availability and lower land prices have driven investment in estate farms and washing stations, strengthening the area’s competitiveness. Kaffa, particularly the Bitta area, stands out for consistent washed and natural coffees with strong clarity and sweetness. Perfectly embodying the broader shift in offerings from western origins.

In response, Trabocca has proactively sought opportunities to secure the best coffees from the west, working with both existing partners and new supply chains to ensure access. 

Western Supply Chains


Ethiopia
Bitta Farm
Ethiopia
Gera Farm
Ethiopia
Private: Wolemso Farm
Ethiopia
Biftu Gudina cooperative
Ethiopia
Nano Challa Cooperative
Ethiopia
Shegole Cooperative
Ethiopia
Duromina Cooperative
Ethiopia
Yukro co-operative
Find more locations

Less washed, more natural

Recent fluctuations in the global coffee market have left a clear mark on Ethiopia. While cherry prices last season remained largely unchanged, farmers are now demanding significantly higher cherry prices. This shift has fundamentally altered the economics of coffee processing.

A Shift Towards More Natural Processing

Following strong prices for dried natural coffee last season, smallholders are adjusting their processing decisions. Instead of selling fresh cherry to washing stations, many chose to process coffee at home. The result is a structural imbalance: greater availability of naturals and reduced volumes of washed coffees, particularly as the season progresses. Roasters requiring larger volumes of washed Ethiopian coffee are advised to commit early. Availability is expected to tighten further as the season progresses, with prices likely to increase accordingly.

Historic high cherry prices and labor costs

Cherry prices peaked at 220–250 ETB/kg in December, representing an increase of up to four times in some cases. This surge was driven by the devaluation and floating of the Ethiopian birr, elevated global market prices, and rising labor costs. The impact at farm level is tangible. Tesfaye Bekele of Suke Quto reports paying up to 50 ETB per kilogram of cherry for picking, compared to 50 ETB per day just a few seasons ago.

Rising Costs at Farm Level

While the value of the birr has fluctuated significantly in recent years, the shift in labor and cherry costs is stark, making it increasingly challenging for producers to maintain healthy margins. In response, cherry pickers often wait for cherries to fully ripen before harvesting, increasing pressure on estate owners during peak periods.

Pre-financing arrangements from Trabocca and roasters, as well as improved liquidity from exporters help counterbalance these pressures and contribute to greater stability.

Ethiopian minimum prices vs. NY C

While most coffee-producing countries price coffee using differentials to the NY “C” market, Ethiopia operates under a system of weekly fixed minimum prices set by grade and region. As the NY “C” market has trended lower, Ethiopian minimum prices have remained relatively high, creating ongoing tension for buyers. At the same time, recent adjustments suggest a gradual move toward closer alignment with global market levels.

Pricing Tension

High internal costs combined with fixed export benchmarks limit pricing flexibility and increase the risk of unsold inventory. Forward commitments help exporters manage this exposure and allocate coffee with greater certainty, improving reliability for buyers. We will closely follow price developments throughout the season to identify favorable booking windows, while keeping availability and quality top of mind.

Learn more about minimum prices

Southern Supply Chains


Ethiopia
Suke Quto Farm
Ethiopia
Shakisso Farm
Ethiopia
Dimtu Tero Farm
Ethiopia
Chelchele
Ethiopia
Halo Beriti washing station
Ethiopia
Aricha washing station
Ethiopia
Sasaba washing station
Ethiopia
Mulish washing station
Find more locations

Decrease in EU Organic Coffee

Stricter European requirements now mandate individual farmer certification, replacing long-standing group certification models. This shift has significantly increased costs and administrative complexity, disproportionately impacting cooperatives that have traditionally enabled smallholders to access organic premiums.  

Unions Scale Back EU Organic Certifications

Discussions with certification managers from unions such as Oromia and Limu Inara reveal a steep decline in the number of certified cooperatives this season. The additional costs and administrative effort required to certify cooperatives (often involving hundreds or even thousands of smallholder members) have made certification financially unfeasible in many cases. NOP and JAS organic certifications remain mostly unchanged with no impact on its availability.

Advantage for Estate Farms

Estate farms, with centralized landholdings are structurally better positioned to absorb these requirements and are increasingly strengthening their EU organic certified offerings relative to smallholder cooperative supply.  

Innovation in the sector

Following several strong harvest seasons, exporters have reinvested heavily in Ethiopia, acquiring estate farms, building new washing stations, and establishing additional dry mills in Addis Ababa. Notably, exporter Daye Bensa celebrated its 20th anniversary with the opening of its Coffee Park in Addis Ababa, featuring a new warehouse and processing facilities. The project highlights continued investment in infrastructure, efficiency, and long-term commitment to Ethiopia’s coffee sector. In parallel, Tesfaye Bekele of Suke Quto has opened his own dry mill, improving milling precision and logistics efficiency across one of our signature supply chains. These investments enhance quality control, traceability, and execution at export level.

SCA Comes to Ethiopia

The establishment of the Specialty Coffee Association of Ethiopia further strengthens Ethiopia’s global positioning and market visibility. Alongside these structural developments, we have observed increased innovation on the field. Exporters are growing more confident in producing high-quality anaerobic and other experimental processing styles, expanding Ethiopia’s range of cup profiles and value-added offerings.

Growing Empowerment of Smallholder Producers

Despite the continued dominance of exporters, we see growing empowerment among smallholder farmers. Improved cherry prices, better access to education, and stronger engagement from younger generations are supporting new sourcing models that enable more direct relationships with individual farming families.

Strengthening Direct Relationships

Through our Operation Cherry Red: Smallholder Series, we successfully onboarded several new producers last season, with field visits this year reaffirming the impact of these partnerships. Together with Balese Dinigu and his family, we launched a pilot project to fund improved processing equipment aligned with our OCR protocols, aimed at elevating quality and consistency. Looking ahead, we are encouraged to see more smallholders taking ownership of their coffee and improving their livelihoods in the process. We look forward to bringing more outstanding smallholder coffees into your roasteries in 2026, strengthening direct relationships and long-term impact at origin.

Operation Cherry Red Smallholders


Ethiopia
Balese Dinigu
Ethiopia
Tigist Abyot Farm
Ethiopia
Kebede Wako Farm
Ethiopia
Girma Sentayehu: OCR Smallholder Series
Ethiopia
Alemayehu Hillo: OCR Smallholder Series
Ethiopia
Legesse Matisso: OCR Smallholder Series
Ethiopia
Tibebu Roba Farm
Ethiopia
the Alemayehu Daniel Farm
Find more locations
Ethiopia Harvest 2025 - 26

Strong Season with Early Opportunities

Quality across Ethiopia looks excellent, confirmed by the first samples now being cupped. Despite ongoing fluctuations in the global coffee market, Ethiopia continues to stand out through its diversity, character, and consistently high cup quality. While new market dynamics challenge last year’s strong value positioning, the overall outlook for the harvest remains very positive.

Why Early Engagement Matters

To secure specific coffees, proactive engagement is recommended. Washed coffees, high-grade naturals, and EU organic certified lots will be more limited and are best secured through early commitment. Prebooking remains the most reliable way to align availability with sourcing needs this season.

Pre-book now!

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