Uhuru Commends the Coffee Sector Reforms
KEY POINTS
The Coffee industry is the world’s 11th largest industry with an annual consumption of about 512 cups per capita and over 110, 000 coffee cafes.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
South Korea is the fourth largest consumer of Kenyan coffee after Belgium, Germany, and the United States. Direct export to this country is a major milestone under H.E President Uhuru Kenyatta’s coffee sub-sector reforms that are geared toward freeing farmers from the chains of predatory brokers.
During the Madaraka Day celebrations on Wednesday, June 1st, President Uhuru Kenyatta commended some of the reforms in the coffee subsector which have seen farmers double their earnings through the direct export of coffee. So far six coffee unions have been licensed by the Capital Markets Authority as brokers.
On Monday, Good Bean Coffee Company, a South Korea-based coffee company received 134.4 Metric Tons of Coffee from Kenya’s Kikpelion District Cooperative Union Limited. This is the second direct export this kericho-based union has made. The first export saw the farmers receive 116 shillings per kilo, almost twice the average price of 76 shillings per kilo usually received after selling to the local firms.
The direct export is a reprieve to Kenyan farmers who for a long time have seen dwindling returns on coffee due to price strangulation by intermediaries in the sector.
South Korea is the fourth largest consumer of Kenyan coffee after Belgium, Germany, and the United States. Direct export to this country is a major milestone under H.E President Uhuru Kenyatta’s coffee sub-sector reforms that are geared toward freeing farmers from the chains of predatory brokers.
‘The deal inked by Good Beans Coffee Company in South Korea, will see Kenyan farmers earning close to USD 908,160 from the direct sale of 134.4 metric tons or an equivalent of 7 coffee containers. About 9,582 coffee farmers will receive an average of 100 shillings per Kilo, almost 3 times that of the current auction price of 35 shillings,’’ the committee said.
In 2020, Kenya exported USD 229Million in Coffee, making it the 25th largest exporter of Coffee in the world. In the same year, Coffee was the 5th most exported product in Kenya. The fastest-growing export markets for Coffee in Kenya between 2019 and 2020 were the United States Switzerland and Germany.
The Coffee industry is the world’s 11th largest industry with an annual consumption of about 512 cups per capita and over 110, 000 coffee cafes.
