Arbegona is a district that is part of the Sidama Region, bordering the Bensa Region to the east. The average altitude is about 2,200 metres above sea level and the area is classified as a highland region. Coffee is the main crop in this region, although many other crops are grown, such as sugar cane, plantain, spices and vegetables. This coffee comes from small farms around Arbegona. The average drying time is about 12-15 days, depending on temperature and humidity. The dried fruits are then stored in warehouses for aromatic ripening.

 

The farm is located in the heart of Shantawene Village, 10 km from Daye town, amidst forests and local trees estimated to be more than 200 years old. The farm is within reach of growers in the villages of Bombe, Shantawene and Keramo. The farm is surrounded by rivers that separate Shantawene from Bombe and flow through the hills above Karamo. A variety of shade trees have been planted on the farm in consultation with experts from the Ministry of Agriculture to maintain natural shade and soil fertility. The growers' farms are certified organic, C.A.F.E. PRACTICE (Coffee And Farmer Equity), UTZ and Rain Forest Alliances.

 

In addition to sourcing coffee from these farms, financial and technical support is provided and gives the opportunity to work with small coffee farm owners to reach out to the community by assisting with maintenance, scale-up and training. Daye Bensa has 16 washing stations and 4 natural processing stations in Bensa, Aroressa and Chire districts of Sidama.

 

It has warehouses in both Addis Ababa and Hawassa cities. The warehouse in Hawassa has a capacity of 4400 square metres. In Addis Ababa, where there is a sorting facility for export, there are five warehouses with a capacity of 5000 square metres.

 

They own a coffee cleaning and processing plant with pre-cleaner, de-stoner, huller, polisher, grader, and handpicking belt facilities with a 4ton/hr capacity.  The color sorter from SATAKE is of the latest camera technology to sort coffee beans with higher sensitivity to remove rejects with maximum efficiency. In order to meet the demand for bulk packing from the customers they use a pneumatic system to load containers in bulk.