GAKENKE

Gakenke – Burundi

Origin: Burundi – Kayanza area (Gatara)

Producer: Gakenke Washing Station. 1,780 small producers.

Variety: Red Bourbon

Altitude: 1,700 – 1,800 m

Process: Honey

Harvest: March → July

Origin and Production

Located in the town of Gatara, in the Kayanza region, northern Burundi, the Gakenke washing station is managed by Greenco. It works with 1,780 producers whose farms are located at over 1,700m altitude and average 200 to 250 coffee trees.

The station was established in 1991, and farmers there are organized into groups of 30 producers led by a lead farmer to facilitate communication and information exchange with the washing station. Greenco supports each group in their agricultural practices through the station managers, all of whom are agricultural engineers.

The Gakenke station has also adopted practices that greatly improve coffee quality. Upon delivery, cherries are floated in small tanks to remove underdeveloped ones. Greenco still buys these floaters but separates them immediately and dedicates them to their lower quality lots.
The cherries are then manually sorted to remove damaged or overripe ones.

They are then sent for processing (whether for washed or natural process) within a maximum of 6 hours after their arrival at the Gakenke Washing Station.

As is the case for all washing stations managed by them, Greenco provides producers with equipment, advice on adopting the best agricultural practices adapted to their farms, and also coffee seedlings to renew their stock (see Nemba Intenso).

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Process

This coffee is produced using the Honey process.

This means that once the Gakenke station's reception protocol is completed, the cherries are immediately pulped using a 3-disc Mackinon pulper equipped with an additional disc for density sorting.

Only beans with a density corresponding to superior quality are kept for this lot.

The cherries are then laid out to dry on one of the station's 224 drying tables for 2 to 3 weeks. They are also regularly turned manually to ensure uniform drying and to perform an initial sorting.