Gutiti is a washing station located in Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia, managed by SNAP Specialty Coffee, the company founded in 2008 by the entrepreneur Negusse. The station is located at an average altitude of approximately 2,200 meters and receives cherry from around 600 smallholder farmers, each cultivating between 2 and 3 hectares planted mostly with the Kurume variety. Since its founding, SNAP has worked across the Sidama, Yirgacheffe and Guji zones, training more than 6,000 farmers and providing free or low cost fertilizers, sprays and other inputs, with particular attention to strict cherry sorting, soil conservation, water management and deforestation awareness.
The cherries selected for this natural process are first placed in water, so that unripe or defective ones float and can be removed. The healthy cherries are then laid on raised beds covered in burlap, where they are left to sun dry for 14 to 20 days.
