Bukeye, Burundi

The Bukeye Washing Station in Burundi’s Muramvya Province takes its name from the nearby Bukeye village. Established by Long Miles Coffee in January 2013, it began operations in April 2014, becoming their first washing station in Burundi. This station has been a hub of innovation for Long Miles operations. The Coffee Scouts program, conceived here, is a holistic agronomist support team that has transformed how farmers approach their crops. From planting and soil health to harvesting and post-harvest care, coffee quality has seen immense growth with every harvest, with even more potential on the horizon.

The station is positioned at 1760 masl, while the farmers and their coffee cherries come from neighbouring hills at higher elevations, up to 1960 masl. The four main hills contributing to the Bukeye lot are Gaharo, Munyinya, Musumba, and Ninga. These names may be familiar to those who follow our coffee program, as we have featured micro-lots from these hills, showcasing unique Burundian terroir.

For many years, Bukeye has been the workhorse of Long Miles' three washing stations, producing a range of specialty coffee. It has played a pivotal role in increasing the potential income for farmers, who are now documented and their coffees traceable. Bukeye purchases cherries directly from farmers and offers training on improved practices, bettering quality and yield over time, promoting coffee cultivation as a sustainable financial prospect.

This lot is a traditional Burundian washed. The traditional washed process begins with cherry evaluation and hand-sorting for ripeness. The cherries are then pulped and undergo a single fermentation stage for 12 hours as dry parchment, without submerging in water. To agitate and loosen the sticky mucilage left on the parchment, helpers at the station sometimes perform a traditional footing dance in the fermentation tanks, similar to footing grapes in winemaking.

After fermentation, the coffee is rinsed with fresh water and graded by density, then soaked for up to 6 hours. This two-stage fermentation has its similarities to traditional coffee processing methods in neighbouring regions like Kenya. The coffee is then transported to covered tables where defects are sorted before it is moved to raised drying beds to dry slowly for sixteen to twenty days, achieving a desired 10.5% moisture level.

Bukeye employs 113 workers, most of whom are from surrounding hills. The team includes 15 Coffee Scouts, led by Tite Ndayisenga, responsible for farm-level quality control, farmer education, and organic composting at the washing station. Additionally, there are three farmer reception officers, five seasonal fermentation and production teams, and 79 women devoted to extensive quality control and curation of the coffee parchment.