ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 9 — The Ethiopian government has expressed keen interest to further penetrate the fast-growing Chinese coffee market as China becomes one of the top destinations for Ethiopian coffee export.
The call was made by officials at the Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority (ECTA) during discussions with Chinese business representatives who are interested in the East African country’s coffee, the ECTA said in a statement issued Monday.
During the discussion, ECTA officials and Ethiopian coffee exporters underscored the Chinese market’s growing importance to Ethiopian coffee exporters, as China becomes one of the top 10 importers of Ethiopian coffee.
Amid the rapid rise in Ethiopia’s coffee exports to China in recent years, officials and coffee exporters said the increasing number of consumers and growing popularity of Ethiopia’s coffee among the Chinese people are propelling Ethiopia’s coffee export market.
In the past three years or so, the amount of coffee Ethiopia exports to China has been growing at an average rate of 27 percent annually, according to recent data from the authority, attributing the surge to a significant increase in Chinese coffee buyers who import coffee directly from Ethiopia.
Ethiopia, renowned for its coffee production, earned 1.43 billion U.S. dollars from coffee exports in the last Ethiopian fiscal year, which ended on July 7, 2024. The East African nation aims to increase this figure to 2 billion dollars during the current 2024/2025 fiscal year.
Regarded as the origin of Arabica coffee, Ethiopia is one of Africa’s largest producers and exporters of the commodity. Coffee production is dubbed as the backbone of the country’s agriculture-led economy. Widely recognized for its rich coffee quality and flavors, ranging from winy to fruity and chocolatey, the country’s coffee is in high demand across the globe.
XINHUA
