Kenyan Coffee Overview Kenya Coffee Grade Kenyan Coffee History Kenyan Coffee varieties

Kenyan coffee, known as the "Cup of connoisseurs" (Connoisseurs' Cup), is famous in the coffee industry for its rich aroma, bright and vibrant acidity, full and elegant mellowness and red wine flavor. Caffeine in different producing areas has its own subtle flavor due to the difference of microclimate.

History of coffee in Kenya

Although it is adjacent to Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee, coffee cultivation does not have a long history. It is generally believed that coffee was brought to Kenya in the late 19th century by the priests of the Holy Spirit Church (Fathers of Holy Spirit congregation). It is more common to say that it came from the island of Reunion (Bourbon, where coffee was found in Bourbon) in 1893, or from Ethiopia.

When coffee first arrived, Kenya was under British rule, and coffee cultivation was promoted to earn foreign exchange. In 1963, when Kenya became independent, the status of coffee did not decline, but was consolidated and was an important component of Kenya's trade income.

Coffee growing area in Kenya

The coffee producing areas in Kenya are mainly concentrated in Mount Kenya (Mt. The plateau region represented by Kenya). Tropical climate, acid red volcanic soil provides a natural and suitable growth environment for coffee. The main producing areas are Nyeri and Ruiru in the middle of the country.

Kenyan Coffee: Overview

Kenyan coffee varieties

Bourbon Bourbon was first brought to Kenya for planting. In the 1950s, the then agricultural research institution Scott Laboratory selected two excellent hybrids, SL-28 and SL-34, through unremitting efforts, subverting the long-standing prejudice of artificial breeding without excellent natural varieties. SL-28 and SL-34 help Kenyan coffee to form its own unique flavor characteristics and establish a perfect reputation in the coffee industry.

Like the choice of other coffee producing countries, although SL-28 and SL-34 have stood the test of time and cultivated generation after generation of faithful pumps for Kenyan coffee, the Kenyan government and the Coffee Research Institute (Coffee Research Foundation) have begun to promote a new variety, Ruiri 11, for the sake of coffee yield and disease resistance. The promoters assure coffee lovers that the new variety still has the classic flavor of Kenyan coffee. However, the continuous efforts have not won the recognition of coffee gluttons, who agree that the new varieties lack taste and that the future of Ruiru11 remains to be seen.

In addition to the prestigious traditional Arabica coffee, robusta coffee is also produced in the western lowlands of Kenya.

Coffee cultivation in Kenya

Mainly by large farms (Estate) and cooperatives (Cooperatives) two types. The former generally has a large planting area and has independent coffee processing facilities. Most coffee production is done by a large number of small farmers, who form coffee cooperatives. The Coffee Cooperative Society employs special managers to supervise the coffee processing of its members, even to the point of managing each coffee tree.

Compared with shading planting in many high-quality producing areas, Kenyan coffee is obviously more spicy and unrestrained, and shade trees are not common. In addition, Kenyan coffee rarely participates in certification, variety and environmental factors make the use of pesticides necessary, and organic certification, which is popular in other countries, becomes rare in Kenya.

Kenyan coffee harvest season

There are two harvest seasons in Kenya, the main harvest season is from October to December and the secondary harvest season is from May to July.

Kenyan coffee processing

Large farms usually have independent treatment facilities. A large number of small farmers usually pick ripe coffee fruits by hand. Coffee picking is a labor-intensive job that requires the whole family to deploy and even hire workers during the harvest season. The fresh fruit of the picked coffee needs to be delivered in time to the cooperative-owned coffee processing plant for pulping, which may be carried by ox carts, pick-up trucks or trucks. After peeling, Parchment coffee is briefly kept in the cooperative's processing plant and sent to a privately owned factory for shelling treatment.

Kenyan Coffee: Overview

Coffee auction and Direct Trade in Kenya

Almost all Kenyan coffee is sold through the coffee exchange in Nairobi, the capital. Coffee auctions are held at coffee exchanges every Tuesday during the harvest season. Traders with trading qualifications will get raw bean samples in advance, and after the cup test, they will choose the raw beans they like. In the following auction, the highest bidder will get. Kenya's coffee auction system is regarded as the model of the popular COE tournament, and it is regarded as the most transparent and efficient way of trade, which can effectively encourage growers to pursue quality and achieve high quality and high price results.

Although the coffee auction system has effectively improved the price of high-quality coffee, it is not without drawbacks. First, the existence of many trade middlemen has eroded the interests of coffee farmers, and the high prices obtained from the auction can not be fully fed back to the hard-working coffee farmers. Second, it is difficult to accurately trace the production information of auctioned coffee. For the booming boutique coffee market, traceability is an important criterion for the evaluation of raw coffee beans. Based on the above factors, the Kenyan government has begun to relax restrictions on direct trade in coffee. State-certified agents can sell coffee beans directly to customers such as foreign boutique coffee roasters. Direct trade can give farmers more rewards for producing high-quality coffee.

Kenyan Coffee: Overview

Kenyan coffee grade

Kenya is a well-known producer based on the size of coffee beans. Usually divided into nine grades, according to the bean type, there are PB, that is, round beans, accounting for about 10% of the total output, in addition to E (elephant beans), AA, AB, C, T, TT, MH, ML according to size.

Coffee related institutions in Kenya

KCPTA: Kenya Federation of Coffee producers and traders, Kenya Coffee Producers and Traders Association

CRF: Kenya Coffee Research Institute, Coffee Research Foundation

KCB: Kenya Coffee Exchange, Kenya Coffee Board

KCTA: Kenyan Federation of Coffee traders, Kenya Coffee Traders Association