Coffee
We Work
Thoughts
Projects
Portal
You’ve reached the inner sanctum
Where would you like to go from here?
Burundi Mexico Rwanda Timor-Leste
Burundi
Izuba
Full Info Sheet
Izuba meaning “sun” in Kirundi, is located in Runinya, Kabarore Commune, of Kayanza Province. The Izuba washing station is set close to a nearby river, providing a vital and regular freshwater source for coffee processing. The station is managed by Ntama Appolinaire, who works alongside Prosper Merrimee, the operational manager of RM Burundi. Izuba employs 2 full-time staff and around 250 seasonal workers, who are all local to the station. Izuba is situated near to the Kibira national park, where the soil and climate are paired well for fantastic coffee production.
Colombia Mexico Rwanda
Colombia
El Carmen
Full Info Sheet
In May 2017, Raw Material met with Invercafe and two new coffee producer groups in Pitalito, Huila, to understand what is preventing farmers from accessing the specialty market. During these discussions we heard farmers describe their core challenges: a lack of key infrastructure; and lack of stable prices to provide certainty for investment in improved quality. Together, we also uncovered a wide gap between how the quality is discussed and measured at the farm level.
El Fénix
Full Info Sheet
As well as being a rare variety producing farm, El Fénix is also home to a developing community wet mill for producers in the area. The project was crowdfunded to help fund the construction of the mill, which when complete will provide the region’s farmers with greater control over their coffee quality, and control over their income through a fixed price payment system. Investment in this kind of accessible infrastructure is one of the necessary steps to make good on the promise of development through trade.
IMH♀
Full Info Sheet
The women’s group IMH (Igualdad Mujeres Hombres) is an initiative of rural women who are committed to learning all that entails to produce high-quality specialty coffee. The group are focussed on processing techniques, from picking to drying, with the goal of improving flavour for sale into the specialty market. Igualdad Mujeres Hombres hosts workshops and exchanges between both male and female coffee producers. The goal is to enhance productivity in the long term, encouraging respectful dynamics between men and women in these rural areas of Colombia.
Risaralda Regional
Full Info Sheet
The Risaralda Regional Blend is a blend of coffees from the regions of Asocafe Tatama Santuario, El Aguila, and Entreverdes. A regional blend means we can maximise the impact for producers across the department of Risaralda, by bringing much larger volumes of their coffee to the specialty market. The blend is brought together in Santuario, where the coffee from each region is blended and prepared for milling.
Santuario
Full Info Sheet
Asocafé Tatama Santuario is an association located in the north-west of Risaralda in the municipality of Santuario. This association has 200 members and has been collectively working towards the commercialisation of specialty coffee, with the goal of paying better prices to its members. The farms which make up the association stretch across altitudes between 1300 - 1900 MASL.
Villamaría
Full Info Sheet
Villamaría's processing station, Jamaica, was chosen due to its perfect climate and altitude for the drying of naturally processed coffee. Alongside this, the large space available meant that producing high-quality naturals at scale was a possibility not available before.
As the project gained speed, roasters worldwide began to buy long-term from Villamaría, and neighbouring communities were able to see the merits of selling cherry to La Aurora, the delivery and buying point for Jamaica, instead of parchment to a nearby trilladora. The sale of whole cherries to a processing station is a method uncommon in Colombia but seen in many other coffee-producing countries.
Burundi Mexico Rwanda
Mexico
El Zapoteco
Full Info Sheet
Is an association of 180 coffee producing families from three towns in the Sierra Juarez. The Sierra Juarez, as well as being the birthplace of Benito Juarez- Mexico’s first President of indigenous origin- is a temperate mountain range to the north of Oaxaca city. Cafe El Zapoteco is led by Romulo Chavez. Romulo has been working for several years now to establish direct relationships with buyers in order to obtain higher prices for the producers of Cafe El Zapoteco. He has also fostered a very strong communal outlook for the association and its producers
Finca Chelín
Full Info Sheet
You may think that Enrique’s coffees seem quite out of place from our usual association focussed lists. Enrique’s farm Finca Chelín is renowned for his high-quality lots, ranging in multitudes of experimentational ferments of high cost and quality varietals. Enrique is highly influential in Oaxaca, and delivers educational training, talks, and access to buyers for other producers in the region. Enrique has been a vital link for us and our partners Red Beetle in connecting us with producers across Sierra Sur.
Independent Producers of the Sierra Sur
Full Info Sheet
During the 2022 season, we were contacted by two producers located in San Agustin Loxicha; Miguel Arellanes, and Luisa Lopez Silva. They reached out to our export partners Red Beetle, having learnt of our buying practices through the producers Los Hermanos Luna, who we have purchased from in the past.
Sierra Mazateca
Full Info Sheet
The Mazateca is located in the state of Oaxaca, one of the most diverse states in México, both biologically and culturally. The Mazateca gets its name from the presence of the indigenous group, the Mazatec, which is a Nahualt name that translates to “the deer people”. However, in their own language, Mazateco, the group is called Ha Shuta Enima, which means “those who work the hills”.
SIPRO
Full Info Sheet
SIPRO stands for Sierra Productora de Cafe. The association is new, and is the brainchild and combined effort of 9 mostly young coffee producers in Amatenango de la Frontera. The small association also represents 20 other producers, who are family members of the core 9 producers.
Union San Pedro
Full Info Sheet
Union San Pedro represents around 180 coffee producing families and is coordinated by Salomon Garcia. Salomon is originally from Xanica, one of the eight communities of San Pedro and he helped to establish the association back in the early 2000’s.
Along with the original leadership group, Salomon went on to found UNTAO to support the production of San Pedro as the association grew. UNTAO, which stands for Unión Nacional de Trabajadores Agrícolas Oaxaqueños, is the co-operative owned exporter and dry mill that we use to mill our coffees in Oaxaca city.
Burundi Colombia Rwanda
Rwanda
Bumbogo
Full Info Sheet
Bumbogo is located in the Gakenke District, an area known for high-quality coffee production in Rwanda. It is a highly competitive region, and home to several winning Cup of Excellence lots in recent years. It is the station closest to Kigali that we work with, built in 2017.
The station has more than doubled their production since 2018, with an impressive expanse of drying beds covering the hills surrounding the washing station itself. The station works alongside the community in ways external to the purchase and processing of its coffee. This value added when paired can massively improve not only quality but the yields of a producer’s land.
Cyesha
Full Info Sheet
Cyesha (pronounced Cheh-sha) is one of Muraho Trading Co’s newest stations, located in Nyamasheke District, close to the shores of Lake Kivu. The coffee of this area grows on volcanic soils, a highly fertile medium for the cultivation of high-quality red bourbon cherries.
In 2024, Cyesha’s staff produced 300 metric tonnes of exportable coffee. Their team is composed of four permanent staff, five seasonal staff, and ninety casual labourers for the high season.
Dahwe
Full Info Sheet
Beyond coffee, Dahwe is home to a model farm demonstrating integrated and regenerative agriculture. In 2025, 986 avocado trees and 4,000 pineapples were planted, alongside the growth of an Ankole cattle herd supported by 15,000 fodder reeds. The farm also produced over 74,000 coffee seedlings, installed hydrant irrigation, and mapped out future road networks to improve access.
Gisheke
Full Info Sheet
Gisheke is located in Nyamasheke District, and overlooks Lake Kivu. Almost half of the cherries received at Gisheke come by boat from Mushungwe Island. All the cherries from the neighbouring islands are delivered by boat to Gisheke, which is only accessible by water.
Gisheke’s geographic location makes it ideal for the processing and drying of naturally processed lots. This is due to the consistent wind flow that moves between two steep hills that lead towards Lake Kivu, Idjwi Island and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Kilimbi
Full Info Sheet
Kilimbi (pronounced Chih-limbi) is of the two first washing stations to be granted approval to produce natural and honey processed coffee in Rwanda by NAEB. The elevation of Kilimbi lends itself incredibly well to the production of exceptional washed, honeys and naturals. Drying beds stretch across a large open plain, where airflow and sunlight have maximum exposure to the coffee as it dries. Built in 2016, it is the birthplace of Muraho Trading Company, as their first washing station.
Rugali
Full Info Sheet
Rugali has become an impactful example of a successful washing station for the specialty coffee market. It is a station that has in just a few years produced coffees that have been used in competitions worldwide and put the Nyamasheke District on the map for high-quality processed Rwandan coffees.
Shyira
Full Info Sheet
Built in 2017, Shyira (pronounced Sheer-rah) is a station situated at 2000 MASL, collecting cherry from neighbouring producers that live between 2000 - 2400 MASL. This is the highest grown coffee we know of in Rwanda, and it’s from a region where very few washing stations are located, making it somewhat unique. It also happens to be located in one of the most stunning areas in Rwanda. It has a river running through the base of the station making water access no issue.
Vunga Co-operative
Full Info Sheet
Vunga is a well-known washing station, though it is located in an area in Rwanda where very little coffee is produced, it has a reputation of producing extremely high-quality coffee. In 2012, Vunga placed 13th in the Rwanda Cup of Excellence and 4th in 2014.
Raw Material is paying a premium of $0.35 USD per kilo of milled green coffee to the Vunga cooperative in order to help fund infrastructure upgrades. This premium assisted the installation of a full serpentine for washing (previously lacking at the station), extended drying tables, and a depulper in 2017. Vunga’s producers receive bonus second payments as well as health insurance through the Cooperative.
Burundi Colombia Mexico