Bekele cultivates only the 74158 variety which is a local landrace, very popular in the Sidama region. As a "typical" smallholder farmer, he used to process his coffee only as natural. But for the last 2 seasons, he was also able to produce some honey lots, using a small pulper provided to him by Crop to Cup (a US-based importer).
As with all smallholders in the area, Bekele's coffee is grown 100% organically, although it's not officially certified due to the small scale of his operations and the disproportionately high cost of certification.
The coffee is picked by hand, then floated, pre-sorted and dried on shaded African beds and dried for 20-22 days depending on the weather and temperature.
