How Ethio Spices came together, and the people who keep it running

We started with a single question: why is it so hard to find berbere and mitmita in South Africa that still tastes like the batch it came from? This page is about the growers, millers and home cooks behind that answer, and the way we work with them.

How Ethio Spices took shape

We did not start with a warehouse or a marketing plan. We started with a shopping list that could not be filled in one place, and a growing number of cooks asking where the berbere actually came from.

First step

One blend, one mill, one honest label

The first batch was berbere only, milled at a cooperative near Gondar and packed in plain resealable pouches. Instead of a vague "Ethiopian spice mix" line, every bag carried the harvest month, the drying method and the grind coarseness. That single decision shaped everything that followed.
Building the range

Mitmita, shiro and the whole-spice shelf

Customers kept asking for the hotter finishing spice and for shiro powder, so we added mitmita ground fine enough to coat kitfo, then shiro, korarima, besobela, tikur azmud and koseret. Whole and ground versions now sit side by side, because some cooks want to toast and grind at home while others want the pouch ready to scoop.
Sourcing

Growers in Gondar, Wolkite and the Rift Valley

We buy through smallholder growers and cooperative mills rather than open commodity markets. It means smaller runs, occasional gaps between harvests, and batches that vary slightly in colour. In return we can tell a cook in Johannesburg or Cape Town which month the chilies were dried and how finely the batch was milled before they check out.
The cart

Mixed blends, gift sets and repeat orders

The basket became the centre of the shop. It handles mixed 100g, 250g and 500g pouches, gift sets for people new to Ethiopian cooking, and repeat orders for households that go through berbere faster than they expect. Heat level is chosen at the pouch, not buried in a product description.
Where we are now

Recipe cards in the box, grinding to order

Most orders ship with cards for doro wat, misir wot and kitfo, written for a normal kitchen rather than a restaurant line. The starter bundle covers the four staples those recipes assume you already own. And because we grind in small runs, a pouch is milled close to the day it leaves us, not months before.

Who we work with, and why it matters

Ethio Spices does not buy from a single anonymous broker. Every blend we sell traces back to named growers and cooperative mills, and those relationships shape what ends up in the pouch. Below are the partners who make that possible, from the fields around Gondar to the kitchens of cooks who order again.

Gondar Smallholder Growers

Around forty farming households supply our sun-dried chilies and besobela. Harvest runs from October into December, and each lot is dried on raised mats before it leaves the village.

Wolkite Cooperative Mill

Mitmita and fine-ground blends are milled here in small runs. The cooperative handles our grind-coarseness specs directly, which is why a 100g pouch of mitmita behaves the same way every time.

Rift Valley Korarima Suppliers

Korarima and tikur azmud come from forest-edge collectors in the Rift Valley. We buy whole and grind to order, so the oils stay in the pod until a batch is actually needed.

Recipe Card Contributors

Home cooks in Johannesburg and Cape Town test our doro wat, misir wot and kitfo cards before they ship. Their notes on heat level and simmer time go straight back into the batch descriptions.

Pouch and Packaging Partners

Our resealable 100g, 250g and 500g pouches are filled and sealed locally. The barrier film is chosen for spice oils, not for shelf decoration, which keeps aroma steady after the first opening.

Gift Set and Bundle Assembly

Starter bundles and gift sets are packed by hand, with batch notes on harvest month and drying method tucked into each box. Mixed orders and repeat baskets are assembled from the same stock.

If you run a small kitchen, a grocery shelf or a cooking class and want to stock Ethiopian pantry staples, the people above are the ones we would introduce you to first. Reach us at info@ethiospices.com or call +27(24)2599624.

Who grinds your berbere, and why it matters

Ethio Spices started as a small operation packing berbere and mitmita for friends in Johannesburg who could not find a blend that tasted like the one their grandmothers made. We still work the same way: buy from growers we know, mill in small runs, and write the harvest month on every pouch.

The shop is built for home cooks, not restaurant supply. That means 100g, 250g and 500g resealable pouches, a starter bundle for anyone new to doro wat or misir wot, and recipe cards tucked into most orders. If you cook kitfo twice a month, you can buy mitmita the way you actually use it.

Sourcing we can name

Chilies, korarima and besobela come from smallholder growers and cooperative mills around Gondar, Wolkite and the Rift Valley. We buy in season, dry on raised mats, and keep batches separate so a coarse grind stays coarse.

Notes on every pouch

Harvest month, drying method and grind coarseness are printed on the label. It is a small thing, but it tells you whether a berbere will bloom fast in niter kibbeh or needs a longer simmer.

Built around the cart

Mix blends, add a gift set, set your heat level, and repeat the order next month. The basket is where most of the decisions happen, so we keep it simple and let you adjust quantities before checkout.