Shakiso Tero

The washing station at Tero Farm is managed by smallholder/outgrower programs. The most common method of managing a private washing station in Ethiopia is simply to buy cherry from surrounding farmers, and that's that. But at Tero Farm and through Dimtu Coffee, smallholders must participate in a comprehensive registration and training, including mapping of each smallholder's farm and training in agronomy and processing. Records are meticulously kept in the offices managed by the station's dedicated outgrower engagement staff.

Through this program farmers benefit from higher prices paid for higher quality cherry, pre-harvest financing, and distribution of seedlings and coffee bags for transport. Smallholders living in the vicinity of Tero Farm deliver their cherries to the farm or to nearby collection centers managed by Dimtu. Their proximity to the tarm allows for a large scale demonstration plot from which the many cherry suppliers can take back to their own smaller scale operations.