Fugi Urakoze Umusaza

Name: Fugi Urakoze Umusaza
Brand: PS Coffee
Price: 18.0 CAD
Availability: InStock

$18.00 CAD

Size

Grind

Description

Low Oxygen Washed Red Bourbon ¹
Nyaraguru District, Southern Province, Rwanda ²
Farmers: Protais Ntanyundo, Paulin Kamageli
Washing Station: Fugi of Baho Coffee ³

Urakoze Umusaza translates roughly from Kinyrwanda to "Thank you, Old Man" and is a name of reverence and respect for the senior generation of coffee producers who deliver cherries to the Fugi Washing Station. As a result of the tragic genocide of 1994, there remain very few smallholder coffee farmers of age and Emmanuel at Baho Coffee set up this group in order to bring these producers together and to give respect and recognition to their work and history. Since 2020, Semilla and Baho have worked on creating deeply traceable coffees by developing identity groups such as Urakoze Umusaza that allows for PS to buy year over year from single producers or small producers groups, something this is unheard of in Rwanda where lots are typically purchased by washing station name only.

In addition to paying prices high above the national farmgate price, Baho also offers second payments in the dry season, offers cash advances against cherry to purchase fertilizer, and provides personal protective equipment to the smallholders. This particular lot is incredibly unique due to its long fermentation which gives deep notes of rich Puer tea and a backbone of stonefruit and florals.

¹ Processing

Ripe cherries are hand sorted and fermented overnight before being depulped and then sealed into plastic barrels for 72 hours. The coffee is then turned out onto raised drying beds, covered during hot sunshine and rainfall. While the coffee dries, it is once again hand-sorted and turned continuously. When the coffee reaches 20-22% moisture, it is covered and rests for 5 days to accentuate fruit aromas after which it is reopened and dried down to 15%. Once at 15% moisture is taken to the warehouse for another 5 days resting in cool humidity before bringing it back to the drying table and to dry down to 11% MC.

² Region of Origin

Southern Province, Nyaraguru District

³ Fugi Washing Station of Baho Coffee

Fugi is quickly becoming a favourite of ours in the Baho network, producing consistently excellent washed and natural lots. Located in the Southern Province of Rwanda, it is nestled between the Nyungwe National Forest and the border of Burundi.

It’s the second smallest station in the Baho collection, purchasing cherry from approximately 950 smallholder farmers in total. This washing station produces approximately 900 bags of exportable specialty-grade coffee each year.

Founded by Emmanuel Rusatira and his family after nearly 20 years of working in washing stations, Emmanuel established Baho Coffee to freely focus his energy on implementing his own philosophies and pushing high-quality protocols with multiple washing stations across the country.

Baho works with diverse groups of small producers who deliver coffee cherries to their washing stations for prices far above the national mandated price. They then undertake the work of processing these coffees to parchment for export.

Many coffee producers have no idea where their coffee ends up or what it tastes like.

This is not that coffee.

Baho Coffee's Urakoze Umusaza

Urakoze Umusaza translates roughly from Kinyrwanda to Thank you, Old Man and is a name of reverence and respect for the senior generation of coffee producers who deliver cherries to the Fugi Washing Station. As a result of the tragic genocide of 1994, there remain very few smallholder coffee farmers of age and Emmanuel at Baho Coffee set up this group in order to bring these producers together and to give respect and recognition to their work and history.

Since 2020, Semilla and Baho have worked on creating deeply traceable coffees by developing identity groups such as Urakoze Umusaza that allows for PS to buy year over year from single producers or small producers groups, something this is unheard of in Rwanda where lots are typically purchased by washing station name only.

Read Their Story

FAQ's

WHO MAKES P.S. COFFEE?

The P.S. Coffee menu is made possible by grower communities and smallholder farmers in Rwanda, Honduras, Colombia and Guatemala. Through our sourcing sister-company Semilla, we hold long-term and consensus based partnerships with producers that have had zero or limited access to or knowledge of the specialty market.

These skilled and passionate professionals are redefining coffee production within their growing regions that have historically been underserved and overlooked despite being within well-respected coffee producing countries. Through community support networks, access to knowledge and capital and investment into physical and intellectual infastracture, they are transitioning towards autonomy and away from the exploitative model they’ve mostly always known.

These are the people and communities you’ll meet through P.S. — and build connections with as we continue to support and purchase from them year after year.

Meet the P.S. Producer Network

HOW IS P.S. COFFEE SOURCED?

All of the coffee on the P.S. menu is exclusively sourced with Semilla Coffee through the following principles:

Durable Relationships

All of Semilla’s relationships are formed with specific communities in underserved coffee growing regions within well-respected coffee production countries. Semilla identifies producer groups that have zero or limited access to or knowledge of the specialty market and takes on the requisite risk that comes with their transition into becoming specialty coffee producers with dedicated buyers across North America. Semilla’s commitment is to work only within the bounds of these groups, seeking to grow with them in pursuit of purchasing all of their production, year after year.

Best Prices, Defined by Producers

All coffees purchased by Semilla are purchased at the best locally available price. This is determined via communication with and understanding of local market dynamics, and prices are arrived upon via a consensus model in which the coffee growers and Semilla agree democratically on the best prices for all involved.

Traceability and Transparency

Semilla’s commitment is to work with complete commitment to traceability and transparency along the value chain. This means full transparency of prices paid to the farmer (farmgate) as well as prices paid at port (FOB). Additionally, Semilla offers in depth information and context for each coffee, the producers who grew it, and the condition within which they work with each purchase.

Quality

Semilla exclusively works in the specialty coffee realm, meaning all of the coffees purchase are above the quality levels offered by conventional commodity or Fair Trade and Organic buyers. Quality is determined in reference to the Specialty Coffee Association and Coffee Quality Institute’s grading standards, with all coffees source for P.S. achieving a minimum of 85 points out of a possible 100.

DO YOU HAVE THIRD-PARTY SUSTAINABILITY CERTIFICATION?

We are skeptic of most fair trade/organic/sustanability certifications. They often leave the financial burden on coffee producers who are, and let's be honest, not polluting anywhere near us folks in the Global North are.

Instead of focusing on these certification, we work towards a value system that uplifts everyone along the coffee supply chain. Through Semilla, our sourcing sister-company, we can connect directly with our coffee producer network to bring to life their ideas that come from, and work for, them towards a more sustainable, equitable value chain.

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