Ethiopian coffee growers are set to get a higher price for their beans, the Addis Ababa Government has hired a UK design agency to develop brand identities for their speciality coffees.

The move comes after Ethiopia succeeded – in the face of US opposition by Starbucks – to gain trademarks for the coffees.

Brandhouse will create an umbrella brand for Ethiopian Fine Coffees and separate brand identities for the high quality Yirgacheffe, Sidamo and Harrar varieties. This will help protect and ultimately promote one of the nation’s most valuable commodities.

While Western consumers are paying sky-high prices for top quality coffee in bars and cafés, the value added to the beans has mainly benefited Western coffee marketers. The Ethiopian Government is fighting to recapture some of that value for the growers. More on this story