Asman Arianto founded the Ribang Gayo Musara cooperative in 2018, establishing a hub in Pantan Musara, Aceh, where coffee thrives between 1,500 and 1,700 masl. Under his leadership, the cooperative has grown to more than 350 farming members who deliver their cherry to the processing facility in Pantan Musara. Asman did not grow up in the area. He came from Palembang in South Sumatra and moved to Aceh Tengah in 1998, where he spent his early years in coffee collecting and processing wet-hulled coffee, the giling basah method most Sumatran producers still rely on.

Over time he wanted more from the cup. He switched from buying parchment to collecting ripe cherry and started processing it as washed, honey, and natural. That change mattered. Instead of the heavy, earthy profile Sumatra is usually known for, his lots came out cleaner and sweeter, with a fruit-forward clarity that caught buyers off guard.

The cooperative was built on a simple promise. Pay farmers a fair price, reward them for quality, and give them a reason to put money back into their land. It worked. Members doubled their production yields between 2016 and 2020, and a new cooperative wet mill came online for the 2020 harvest, giving the team far more control over how the coffee is handled once it leaves the tree.

The recognition followed. Ribang Gayo Musara took top honours at the Indonesia Cup of Excellence, winning in both 2021 and 2022, and its natural lot placed first in 2022 with a score of 90.59. The coffee has since gone on to win Good Food Awards and reach roasters around the world. For Asman, the awards were never really the point. The point was building something his farmers could count on, season after season.