Sookoo coffee began as a natural-sundried coffee processing site equipped with a dry milling machine in Suke Quto village in 2018. Soon after, it grew to include an 80-hectare coffee farm in the town of Dambi Uddo. In addition to working with coffees they grow, Sookoo leverages the processing infrastructure at this farm to purchase ripe cherries from nearby smallholder farmers, or outgrowers, which are processed and sold as regional blends. This coffee comes from one of Sookoo’s outgrower groups, consisting of 45 coffee farmers in Okoluu village, a subsection of Dambi Uddo. Since our partnership began in 2019, we have and have purchased from this group because of the distinct florality we find in the cup.
Farmers from Okoluu deliver hand-picked coffee cherries directly from their farms to the Suke Quto processing site. Upon delivery, workers sort out underripe, overripe, and pest-damaged coffee cherries by hand, ensuring that only perfectly ripe cherries make their way onto the raised drying beds. Here, they dry under the sun for 18 to 21 days, with workers manually turning the cherries six times daily to promote even drying. At night, the cherries are covered with nylon mesh and plastic to prevent pest damage and rehydration from dew. Workers carefully monitor the cherry's moisture loss after 15 days and pull finished cherries off the beds when they reach an ideal moisture level between 9.5 and 10.5 percent.
While variety, soil quality, and rainfall contribute to the cherries’ quality, Okoluu’s vibrant fruit and floral complexity is largely driven by this meticulous, hands-on natural processing technique.
