Crop Protection – Kerchanshe Trading Company
Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resource, Natural Sciences
Kerchanshe Trading Company
As the largest producer and exporter of coffee in Ethiopia, Kerchanshe Trading has a proud history of providing quality coffees to the local and international markets. Founded on the principle of bringing fairness and transparency to the coffee value chain while satisfying customer demand, Kerchanshe is also a company with the national, regional and global vision.
Kerchanshe specializes in coffees sourced from Yirgacheffe, Nekemte, Gimbi, Djimma, and Sidamo, names that epitomise fine Arabica coffee. Since its inception 15 years ago, Kerchanshe has established a track record of fair trading and excellent customer service, and now employs over 1,350 permanent staff and more than 20,000 seasonal staff. Directly and indirectly, it impacts the livelihoods of over 1 million coffee growers throughout the southern and south-western coffee-cultivating regions of Ethiopia.
The passion for fine coffee is coupled with consistent reinvestment not only in improved infrastructure, technology and processes, but Kerchanshe also invests 10% of its annual profits into social responsibility programs through Buna Qala NGO, which is stablished and fully supported and monitored under Kerchanshe tradin, the former to build public schools, clinics, etc, to provide clean water and other related cervices to the communities.
The diversified types of Arabica cultivation in the country and its highly suitable environment with high altitudes, good rainfall, and rich volcanic soils yields to the uniquely Ethiopian flavours and aromas that are present in its elegant range of gourmet, specialty and organic coffee. Coffees are rich in acidity, aromatic, and sweet flavoured, with a spicy, flora, or mocha taste.
OUR VISION
To be the leader in innovation and quality among coffee producers and exporters while caring for the environment.
OUR MISSION
We are committed to providing the finest high-quality coffee beans to our customers worldwide while forging mutually beneficial relationships with the community and the environment that we live in.
General Job Description:
Crop Protection Specialists utilize advances in farming equipment and practices to achieve higher yields of crops and to protect crops from environmental risks such as pests and diseases.
Job Description
- To implement chemical crop protection activities for the farm.
- To plan weekly spray programs for all crops in consultation with the Production Manager.
- To ensure the spray equipment is in a serviceable state at all times and to follow up on any repairs that may be needed.
- Ensures sterilization of irrigation water as per the protocols to achieve the set standards.
- Ensures timely dosing of various fertilizer recipes, to achieve the desired target
- Supports the production team on matters regarding water management to achieve a healthy crop throughout the growing cycle.
- Ensures all irrigation and Climate related data is collected, tabulated and presented on time for analysis and decision making
- Ensures all equipment and structures are serviced regularly, calibrated and records kept accordingly
- Observe workers to detect inefficient or unsafe work procedures or to identify problems, initiating corrective action as necessary.
- Ability to plan for sprays for different crop growth stages and generate a weekly spray plan.
- Inspect crops, fields, or plant stock to determine conditions and need for cultivating, spraying, weeding, or harvesting
- Keeping up to date with new trends and products for crop protection
- Lead the Team and drive continuous improvement in their performance, optimizing the organizational structure as well as ways of working
- Train workers in techniques such as planting, harvesting, weeding, or insect identification and in the use of safety measures.
- To carry out any other duties as instructed by the farm manager from time to time.
Qualification
- BA degree in Agricultural, Agronomist, Plant Science, Horticulture or other related fields.
- Minimum of four (4) years’ experience as crop protection officer, preferably experience with a FMCG
Skills Required
- Solid knowledge of horticultural production processes
- Good insight in horticultural development
- Broad experience in capacity building, extension service, innovation
- Demonstrated strengths in communication, self-organization and problem solving Skill
Negotiation
