Horizon Plantations Plc to boost coffee operations

AT Horizon Plantations Plc., a well-known agricultural company in Ethiopia, coffee and other crops are produced with modern technology. Owned by Mohamed al-Amoudi from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the company recently announced its plans to increase its investments in coffee production. In an interview with Bloomberg, the company said it would earmark about $500 million in projects that would be completed in the next five years. The investment would be for training, upgrades to washing stations, as well as road improvements, all of which are expected to double Horizon’s production.

To date, the company manages two coffee plantations. One is the Limu Coffee Farm, which has been in operation for 40 years. It was purchased by Horizon in 2013. With over 12,000 hectares of land, this farm is located in the Jimma Zone of the Oromia Regional State, 350km west of Addis Ababa. About 8,000 hectares is allocated to growing coffee.

Established in 1975, BEBEKA Coffee Estate Plc is 10,030 hectares of land in the South West part of Ethiopia. About half of the land grows Arabica coffee. Horizon purchased the company in 2011. BEBEKA as well as Limu produce UTZ, Rainforest Alliance, and 4C Association certified coffees.

In 2013, Horizon acquired Coffee Processing and Warehouse Enterprise (CPWE) for which it is now looking for partners.