

Rwanda Roots - Rushashi - Coffee beans - Speciality coffee 250g
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CARAMEL, RASPBERRY, CITRUS
Rwanda Roots – Ruhashi – 250g Select Coffee Beans.
Rushashi Coffee Washing Station (CWS) is the larger of two processing plants owned by the Abakundakawa Coffee Producers Cooperative, one of the original partners of This Side Up (a green coffee bean supplier). It is located in the lush and green Gakenke district, which is characterized by tall, pointed hills at high altitudes, making it ideal for producing high-quality coffee. It is no coincidence that this region produces some of Rwanda’s most sought-after coffees.
Abakundakawa Rushashi started as an association in 1999 with 103 members. Today, it is a solid, well-organized cooperative with 2,100+ farmers, of whom 900+ are women and 400+ are youth, in 17 villages in Gakenke district. We are proud to have consistently supported such a beacon of light on so many fronts, and even after all these years with our beloved friend Antoine in the driver's seat.
It is safe to say that Rushashi has been the cornerstone of This Side Up’s success since the early years of our existence. Our destinies have been intertwined since we began transparently promoting Rushashi in 2013 and other producers (in Rwanda, but soon in the rest of the world) began demanding similar prices. Before 2012, most farmers in the area processed coffee traditionally at home, but since Antoine Kagenza took his position as manager, many things have changed. After the introduction of quality processing techniques, which inspired young men and women in particular to process and grow coffee differently and with an energy-efficient triple fermentation method. In 2015, the Ishema Youth Coffee Group was born, of which we are proud supporters. Today, Rushashi invests in financial independence in rural banks through the careful development and management of their credit and savings systems.
Abakundakawa is also a good example of how Rwandan rural society is dealing with the horrors of the past in a hopeful and inspiring way. During the genocide, many Rwandan women lost their husbands and were forced to take care of not only their own but also many orphaned children. These women began to organize themselves in special organizations for women's empowerment. Their approach to peace and active listening has brought lasting stability to their region. This women's group was born thanks to their listening approach when one day women from opposite sides of the genocide met by chance in a laundry; some were the wives of those imprisoned for murder and others were the widows of those killed. There was tension, but above all sadness. "We noticed that these women were not speaking on the same level because they did not know each other's stories," shares Antoine Kagenza: "So we started by telling each other the story of the other side." Through this experience, the women came to understand each other and their suffering: both had lost their husbands for reasons they did not understand: their grief was the same. They came together as sisters and coffee farmers, and two strong women's groups were born: Duhingekawa and Abanyameraka.
100% Arabica
Processing: Natural
In terms of processing, it uses a particularly long fermentation process, which has been adopted by several nearby cooperatives and probably contributed to the bronze medal they won in 2010 at the Rwanda Cup of Excellence.
Altitude: 1,700 - 2,000 meters above sea level.