Ethiopian Cargo brings coffee beans to Ezhou for the first time on 24 May 2025

Report, photo copyright by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

At 10.58 am on 24 May 2025, an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 777 freighter from Addis Ababa landed smoothly at Ezhou Huahu International Airport, carrying 66 tons of Ethiopian premium coffee beans. This is the first international "coffee bean flight" at Huahu Airport. This flight customized for coffee bean trade not only witnessed the vigorous vitality of China-Africa cooperation in the new era, but also injected new momentum into building a closer China-Africa community with a shared future.

Ethiopia is located in northeast Africa. It is a member of the BRICS and an important participant in the "Belt and Road" initiative in Africa. It is the birthplace of coffee beans. Its capital, Addis Ababa, is the seat of the African Union. Coffee is Ethiopia's most important export cash crop and the main source of foreign exchange income for Ethiopia. At present, about 25% of the Ethiopian population relies directly or indirectly on coffee production for their livelihood.

As the world's fourth and Asia's first professional cargo hub airport, Huahu Airport has become an important platform for high-quality African products to enter the Chinese market with its cargo route network advantage of "reaching the whole country overnight and connecting the world the next day". After the Ethiopian boutique coffee beans landed, relying on the efficient distribution system of Huahu Airport, they can reach consumers across the country the next day. Previously, it took 25 to 30 days to reach China by traditional sea transportation. This not only opens up a broader Chinese market for high-quality African products, but also allows Chinese consumers to taste the exotic fragrance.

Ethiopian Airlines is the largest airline in Africa and the first African airline to settle in Huahu Airport. Since the opening of the "Ezhou-Addis Ababa, Ethiopia" route on 6 February 2024, it has accumulated 248 flights and transported more than 12,000 tons of cargo. This route is like a large air channel, transporting Chinese electronic products, mechanical equipment and other industrial products to Africa, and continuously introducing high-quality African products such as coffee beans and nuts into the Chinese market, vigorously promoting the growth of African countries' trade with China and boosting local economic development.

Huahu Airport will deepen cooperation with Ethiopian Airlines, jointly build an African overseas cargo terminal in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, and carefully build a dual circulation system of "Chinese commodity exports = African high-quality commodity imports". After the cargo terminal is put into use, Chinese cross-border e-commerce goods can be distributed in Africa in advance, and the delivery cycle will be shortened by 30%. At the same time, high value-added products such as African fresh cut flowers and lobsters can also be directly supplied to the Chinese market through Huahu Airport.