Nestle Kenya to Join the World in Celebrating International Coffee Day

Coffee was introduced in Kenya in 1893 by the Britons and today, Kenya produces one of the best coffees in the world.

Kenya grows Arabica coffee, one of the main two coffee species in the world. Arabica coffee is of high quality, mild and much favored by the coffee aficionados.

In Kenya, coffee is grown in the volcanic soil fertile highlands. There is about 160,000 ha of land under which coffee is grown in Kenya, with 1/3rd of this being under plantation. The rest is by small-scale growers who have employed over 250,000 Kenyans. These small landholders have also formed cooperatives that process and market their coffee.

With its broad rounded and slightly sloping valleys, and swift perennial streams, Kenya makes a perfect home for the world’s most favored coffee. The Kenyan highlands where the coffee is grown are also rich in volcanic soils that have good drainage.

A particular protocol is followed from the day coffee seeds are in the nursery, taken to the farm, pulping, milling and grading. This attention to detail ensures production of the best coffee. It also makes the Kenyan coffee achieve the highest quality coffee status at the world level.
The country has two coffee harvests in a year.

The “fly” or early crop that is harvested between September and December, and the “main” or late crop is harvested between March and July.

Kenya produces mild coffees with primary processing being undertaken at either the communally/cooperative owned mills that aggregate coffee from small-scale farmers or at farmer-owned mills in large-scale plantations. Secondary processing and post-farm logistics such as transportation are largely undertaken by contracted private sector service providers.

Kenya’s coffee farmers have an option of selling their coffee directly to international buyers, or they can contract and authorize their marketing agents to sell through the Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE), a spot market that has been in existence since the early 1930s. Direct sale contracts must be however be registered with the Coffee Directorate of Kenya’s Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA).

Kenya is the main coffee logistics hub for Eastern Africa and all the main international coffee traders are represented. Exports shipments continue throughout the year, in January to July for the main late crop and in August to December for the early crop. The Kenyan government does not impose a tax on coffee exports from Kenya.

The main destinations for Kenya’s coffee exports include Germany, United States, Belgium, Finland, South Korea, Switzerland, France, United Kingdom and Canada.

The United States is the second most important export destination for Kenyan coffee after Germany. The Kenyan government has stepped up its marketing and promotional activities to attract more U.S. buyers of Kenya coffee and Kenya was the “coffee portrait country” at the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) trade fair in Seattle, Washington in April 2017.

Nestlé is the world’s largest coffee producer, and worldwide demand for the drink continues to grow. The company’s coffee businesses are focused on ensuring sustainably sourced, good quality supplies.

Nestlé is among the leading coffee companies in Kenya who rely on more than 5 million farmers to produce agricultural raw materials for their high-quality foods and beverages.

Coffee is one of Nestlé’s core products. In the Equatorial Africa region, Nescafé classic and Nescafé 3in1 re the major coffee brands though other brands are also available.

Nestlé sources coffee from around the world. While dealing with coffee farmers, Nestlé ensures that the farmer is also benefiting, this is the concept of Creating Shared Value and in this case, it is executed through the Nescafé Plan in collaboration with CMS (the implementing partner). In the region, Kenya and Ethiopia have benefited through:

· Training of farmers on better farming practices
· Improved income for their crop
· Aroma scholarship for bright but needy children from coffee farmers
· Health camps in partnership with Novartis
· Clean energy and water sponsored by Zoegas
· Foseck- food security for Ethiopian & Kenyan coffee farmers
· Women & Youth Empowerment

On Friday, September 29th, 2017, the world will be celebrating the International Coffee Day, which happens to be very important for Nestlé. On this day, they not only want to celebrate coffee but also, educate people more on coffee and on what Nestlé is doing in regards to coffee farming.