Netsanet Sori Launches Hand-Roasted Ethiopian Coffee Business for Whalsay's 1,000 Residents
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · May 31
Netsanet Sori Launches Hand-Roasted Ethiopian Coffee Business for Whalsay's 1,000 Residents
3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 31
Summary
Whalsay resident Netsanet Sori has turned her home coffee roasting into a business, selling hand-roasted Ethiopian beans to the island's roughly 1,000 residents through a local honesty box.
Sori, who moved to Shetland in October 2025 after nine years in Orkney, imports beans from the family farm in Ethiopia where she was raised and says the venture keeps her connected to home.
The coffee is roasted by hand in a pot, with the beans constantly shaken for an even roast before grinding — a process rooted in Ethiopia's daily coffee ceremony centered on sharing and community.
Local demand helped spur the launch: Sori said she found no similar roaster in Shetland, and customers on Whalsay say the new 'coffee box' offers fresh local coffee without leaving the island.