According to Index Mundi, Liberia’s coffee production peaked at 209,000 60kg bags in 1985. But in the years since, coffee production has dropped considerably for a number of complex reasons. As part of this decline, more farmers are growing more profitable cash crops instead, such as cocoa and natural rubber.

However, when it comes to its coffee production, Liberia is perhaps best known for Coffea liberica: a coffee species that produces large cherries. In part, this helps to enhance the sweetness of liberica, as well as prolonging its aftertaste. In recent years, these qualities have helped to increase liberica’s presence in the specialty coffee sector.

To learn more about whether Liberia’s coffee sector can grow in the coming years, I spoke to two local experts. Read on for more of their insight.

You may also like our article on Coffea liberica.

A history of coffee in Liberia

In order to understand the Liberian coffee sector, we first need to take a look at the country’s complex history.

Indigenous people have been living in West Africa for millennia, including in Liberia. Archaeologists have found clear evidence that human activity dates back to the Lower Paleolithic period in the region.

However, Liberia’s population increased significantly in the early 19th century. Under the guidance of the American Colonisation Society, former slaves in the US migrated (albeit some of this was forced) to Africa. 

The organisation, which was founded in 1816, was designed to encourage liberated slaves to leave the US – but mainly for prejudiced and discriminatory reasons. Understandably, many African Americans strongly opposed the organisation, however, others believed that migrating out of the US could result in them facing less social and legal oppression.

Many former slaves who migrated (whether willing or unwilling) settled in Liberia. In 1848, the country elected Joseph Jenkins Roberts as its first president, but it took another 14 years to globally recognise Liberia as an independent state.

However, there was clear division between US migrants and indigenous Liberian communities, such as the Kru and Grebo people. This was for a number of complex reasons, including establishing plantations and forcing indigenous people to work as slaves.

As a result of forced labour, as well as receiving significant investment from the US, Liberia’s exports began to increase. While most of these exports were rubber, the country also traded small volumes of coffee.

Following a military coup in 1980 and an insurrection in 1989, however, the country entered decades of civil unrest and conflict. As well as the devastating impact on the country’s coffee sector, thousands of people died.

A brief history of Coffea liberica

Although Liberia mostly grows robusta, it is arguably more well-known for another coffee species: liberica.

According to the 2022 research paper The re-emergence of Liberica coffee as a major crop plant, liberica is indigenous to most of the tropical regions in West and Central Africa. 

It’s believed that after growing wild for centuries, liberica seeds were disseminated from Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone in the 1870s for wider commercial coffee production. In turn, several Southeast Asian countries started to grow liberica instead of arabica, which was under threat because of coffee leaf rust outbreaks at the time.

The paper also states that between 1880 and 1900, global production volumes of liberica were similar to that of arabica in some countries. This was mostly because liberica is a robust, high-yielding plant which can grow at low elevations and produce large cherries – which made it favourable among farmers.

However, liberica’s popularity proved to be short-lived. Following concerns over poor quality, there was a significant drop in demand for liberica. This is was mostly related to the large size of the cherries, which made it difficult to process them.

Understanding coffee production in Liberia

Robert Kollie is the Board Chair at Green Future Agro Inc. in Liberia.

“Coffee producers in Liberia grow robusta and liberica,” he says. 

Robusta mostly grows in central and northern Liberia. Some of the biggest coffee-producing regions include Nimba, Lofa, Bong, Grand Cape Mount, River Gee, and Margibi.

“At our co-operative, we sell seedlings and planting materials to farmers,” Robert explains. “We also provide technical support to farmers, and if a producer wants to manage their own farm or start a coffee business, we help them to estimate costs.”

However, because of years of conflict, many farmers abandoned their coffee farms.

In an attempt to revitalise the country’s coffee sector, the International Trade Centre (ITC) helped to disseminate some 4,400 seedlings to farmers. However, it’s clear that more work needs to be done.

Tyler Papula is the co-founder and CEO at Liberica Coffee Company in Liberia. He also works in partnership with Save More Kids as a Campaign and Project Co-ordinator, as well as with the SMK Agricultural Co-operative. The latter helps to provide agricultural training to farmers, as well as assisting with farm rehabilitation and infrastructure improvements, with the aim of increasing coffee quality and quantity.

He tells me that it’s common to find coffee growing wild in forests in Liberia – especially liberica. However, it can be anywhere from difficult to impossible to harvest the cherries because the plants grow so tall.

When it comes to coffee processing, Robert explains that there is a significant gap in technical knowledge and access to resources.

“There are only a very small number of processing facilities in Liberia, but even they aren’t well equipped,” he says. “Most of our farmers send their coffee to the Ivory Coast or sometimes Guinea.”

How is coffee processed and traded in Liberia?

After harvesting, almost all cherry is left to dry in the sun on patios. Following this, some farmers then export their cherry to the Ivory Coast, where it will be dry milled.

Robert tells me that Green Future Agro is working to enable more farmers to dry mill their own coffee, thereby retaining more value.

“After a training session we attended in Togo, we imported a coffee milling machine which can process dried cherry,” he says. “We plan on buying the machine so that we can better support our farmers.

“The farmers will pay a small fee at the end of every month so that we can process their coffee,” he adds.

Prior to the First Liberian Civil War, the Liberian Produce Marketing Corporation (LPMC) was responsible for the country’s agriculture sector, including coffee. The organisation handled a number of tasks, such as providing producers with farming inputs, carrying out quality control checks, inspecting farms, and managing exports of coffee.

However, in the years since the Second Liberian Civil War, the LPMC has struggled to regain full control of coffee exports. In turn, some farmers in Liberia cross the border over to Cote d’Ivoire or Guinea to sell their dried cherry.

Other producers sell their dried cherry to agents, who then transport the coffee to the Ivory Coast, Guinea, or Sierra Leone, where it is sold. Ultimately, this means most of the coffee produced in Liberia isn’t consumed domestically. 

Does Liberia roast and consume coffee?

Robert tells me that there are no real commercial roasters in Liberia.

“We want to change this,” he says. “We try to encourage farmers to taste their own coffee.

“As part of this, the ITC held a workshop on how to operate a roaster and coffee shop,” he adds.

The majority of coffee consumed in Liberia is imported from neighbouring countries. And while there are no coffee shops, some hotels and restaurants serve coffee. For the most part, people drink instant coffee, including Nescafé.

“We plan to open our own coffee shop,” Robert says. “This means Liberian farmers will be able to taste their own coffee.”

Addressing challenges

Tyler says that many of the issues which Liberian coffee farmers face are complex.

“The country’s coffee sector is somewhat disorganised,” he says. “Moreover, people don’t see Liberian coffee as being high quality.

“The biggest challenge is changing the mindset of producers,” he adds. “Some farmers are excited at the prospect of improving coffee quality and yields, but others are still hesitant.”

Moreover, there is a distinct lack of access to financial support for many coffee farmers, which means it’s difficult to acquire farming inputs like fertilisers. Ultimately, until access to resources and financial support improve, coffee quality and yields can’t increase.

Improving access to resources and support

“There is little support from the government,” Tyler explains. “This makes coffee production very difficult – farmers need access to loans, as well as more co-operatives providing seedlings to them.

“There also needs to be improvements to Liberia’s overall infrastructure,” he adds. “This way, we can encourage more entrepreneurship and mitigate corruption as well.”

For instance, the road infrastructure in some producing areas is poor, which means farmers can’t transport their coffee to processing facilities or to the capital city of Monrovia for export.

And while interest in liberica from the specialty coffee sector has increased recently – notably as a result of 2021 World Barista Championship finalist Hugh Kelly’s routine – production volumes are still too low to meet rising demand.

Robert believes that the way forward is to encourage farmers to add more value to their coffee – mainly through processing and roasting.

“For farmers, processing coffee themselves, and then roasting and tasting it, will allow them to be more engaged in growing coffee,” he says. “However, first and foremost, we need to provide high-quality farming inputs and seedlings.”

Liberia’s history is deeply complex, and the country’s coffee farmers continue to face a number of challenges. Ultimately, if things are to improve, access to financial support, infrastructure, and resources need to increase considerably.

“We have lots of land available for coffee production,” Robert concludes. “There are a lot of mountainous regions which are suitable for growing high-quality coffee, but a support system for farmers is seriously lacking.”

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Two of the most widespread coffee farming models are estates and co-operatives. The former is simply a coffee farm (usually a large one) which generally processes and sells its coffee alone. The latter, meanwhile, is a model which encompasses a group of farmers who process and sell their coffee collectively in order to gain better access to equipment, facilities, and business opportunities.

While both models have their advantages and drawbacks, in recent years, smallholder producers in some countries have started to leave co-ops in favour of alternative farming models. The reasons for this are complex, however, it has ultimately led to the formation of new hybrid models – including the concept of “coffee farmer collectives”. 

To learn more about the differences between coffee estates and co-operatives, as well as farmer collectives, I spoke with Symon Sogomo, a producer at Sogomo Coffee Estate in Kenya, and Alejandro Hernandez, a coffee quality control manager in Colombia. Read on for more of their insight.

You may also like our article on why people are calling for reform in Kenyan coffee production.

Co-operatives vs estate farms: What are the main differences?

Before we explore the issues with these two models, we first need to understand how they work and how they are different – mainly when it comes to size.

Essentially, a coffee co-operative is a group of producers who join together to collectively improve their access to a number of resources. These can include fertilisers, farming tools, seeds, and loans. 

As well as this, farmers can also have more access to formal training programmes and can leverage better marketing and business opportunities. In theory, this can help them to receive higher prices for their coffee, or improve stability by committing to selling a larger volume of coffee on a repeat basis.

Coffee co-operatives have been prominent across the industry for decades. When well-managed, they offer a number of benefits to farmer members – typically smallholder producers who own smaller parcels of land. However, the model has received its fair share of criticism in recent years.

In Kenya, for example, co-ops receive money once a coffee has been sold. The co-op then deducts fees and remits money to individual members, but this can sometimes lead to disagreements over the final amount.

“For a number of complex reasons, not all of Kenya’s coffee-growing regions have well-developed co-operatives,” Symon says. “For instance, in areas where there is plenty of land, there are more coffee estates.”

Looking at coffee estates

In comparison, estate farms are much larger in size than each co-operative member’s individual farm. First and foremost, this gives producers ownership over more of the production process, including how they process and sell coffee. 

Farmers can carry out post-harvest processing on-site, and will often process and sell their coffee separately to other producers in the area – although this isn’t always the case.

However, this increased ownership also means increased responsibility. On estates, there isn’t a support network of other co-operative members and professionals to help with the processing, marketing, and sale of their coffee. Similarly, the party which owns the estate must deal with any financial issues.

Are more farmers leaving co-ops?

As previously mentioned, in recent years, we’ve seen more and more producers choose to leave co-operatives in some countries. There are a number of reasons for this.

Firstly, many co-op members depend heavily on their collective access to resources, formal training, and business opportunities, farmers may also have to deal with collective burdens. For instance, co-operative-wide financial issues (such as unforeseen costs or issues with debt) affect the entirety of its membership.

Decision making and autonomy over the processing and sale of coffee can also be difficult at co-ops. Although coffee remains the property of the producers, co-op management makes the majority of decisions about the processing and sale of coffee. 

This means that an individual farmer has much less ownership over their coffee – they are, for instance, often unable to process their coffee in a different way to other members. Furthermore, while they may have a say, they also don’t get to individually choose the price the coffee sells for.

“In Colombia, we don’t have many large coffee estates,” Alejandro explains. “Most of the varieties grown in the country are traditional, such as Caturra and Castillo, and the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia (FNC) mainly wants to buy washed coffee, too.

“Co-operative members receive more money for fully washed coffees than estate farmers,” he adds. “Most producers in Colombia belong to co-operatives because growing specialty coffee is still a relatively new concept here.”

What about estate production?

For the most part, owning a coffee estate is down to the amount of land that a producer has access to. This provides a greater scale of production, as well increased autonomy – estate owners can choose to pivot and experiment a bit more easily.

For example, we’re seeing a lot of younger producers becoming more aware that certain processing methods – especially more experimental techniques – can add value to their coffee in specific markets, which can potentially increase the prices they receive.

“With estate production, farmers can have full control over their operations, including processing,” Symon says. “In theory, they can reap more rewards when they put more effort into their coffee production.”

In some producing countries (such as Kenya), land inheritance can force farmers to leave the co-operative model behind. Furthermore, older producers often carry out most of the decision making in co-operatives, which can leave younger generations of farmers disillusioned. As a result, some of them register as estate farmers, which allows them to have much more control over coffee production.

The drawbacks of estate farming

However, just because estate farmers typically have larger farms does not mean they are without their own unique problems. For example, in some producing countries, farmers need a licence to operate estates.

“In Colombia, the FNC manages the majority of coffee exports,” Alejandro says. “The FNC deducts a small percentage of total sales of coffee (known as ‘coffee contribution’) to be used to support farmers.

“However, if you are not a member of the FNC, you need to have a license to operate as an individual or estate farmer,” he adds.

There are several requirements which coffee farmers need to meet to receive an estate licence. Although these can vary between producing countries, they generally include a number of minimum coffee plants, the acreage under coffee production, and total production volume.

Alongside licence fees, establishing a coffee estate can be expensive and time consuming. It’s likely that farmers will need to invest in a substantial amount of equipment and resources, which represents a significant upfront cost. Furthermore, estate farmers need to manage production and labour costs themselves, as well as the processing and marketing of their coffee – all things that co-operative management would often take care of.

What are coffee farmer collectives?

Although co-operatives and estates are two of the most common coffee farming models, Symon tells me that more “coffee farmer collectives” are starting to emerge in some producing countries – particularly Kenya.

“It’s a hybrid model – these collectives are like estates, but they operate in a similar way to a co-operative society,” he says. “The owner of the estate maintains their independence.

“A co-operative has to have at least five members or so to become established, whereas a farmer collective requires less members,” he adds.

Farmer collectives tend to include producers who don’t own or lease farms which are large enough to register as estates, but they are also not willing to join a co-operative.

In these cases, a small group of producers from the same region can form a farmer collective, which can be registered as a coffee business with the local authority. Each farmer can retain control over their respective farm, however, coffee processing can be carried out collectively at local micro mill facilities.

Coffee farmer collectives are also able to own and operate their own dry mills, where they can remove parchment from beans, as well as grade, sort, package, and export their coffees. This way, members of the collective can retain more of their coffee’s value.

Unlike coffee estates, larger areas of land aren’t required to establish a farmer collective. In some cases, the requirements to join a farmer collective can vary widely, so smallholder producers are also able to become a member.

Individual members of coffee farmer collectives are also able to directly interact with buyers, which means they are able to negotiate prices. However, Symon points out that this can be a problem, too.

“As a collective, you can negotiate prices and conditions more effectively,” he says.

What does the future hold for coffee estates and co-ops?

Irrespective of the emergence of the coffee farmer collective model, we know that estates and co-ops are far more prominent across the industry. But how might this change in the years to come?

“Well-managed co-operatives ensure that all members abide by the required guidelines and standards, which in turn means producers have better access to resources,” Symon says. “Co-op managers can also restrict a member’s earnings if they don’t produce coffee to a high enough quality, [which can be an incentive to maintain quality standards].”

Co-operatives can also act as a safety net for some smallholder producers, as they provide easier access to facilities, resources, and business opportunities. Moreover, the costs of production can also be reduced, while estate production can be costly for individual farmers.

Weighing the pros and cons

If well managed and with proper oversight, some buyers often prefer to purchase coffee from co-ops rather than estates – largely because they often have a better reputation for quality control. For instance, cherries need to be sorted before they can be accepted by co-operative management, which in theory means only ripe cherries are processed.

Furthermore, estate farmers generally hire seasonal labour to help across the harvest season. If pickers are paid for the amount of cherry they harvest, this could be an incentive to focus on volume over quality – although this is not always the case.

“Estate farmers need more time and equipment to harvest ripe cherries, which is not always easy,” Alejandro says. “Co-operatives, however, don’t always face this issue.”

However, at the same time, the increased autonomy of estate production remains a key factor: farmers who have more scale can add more value to their coffee through processing, branding, and marketing.

In short, for individual farmers who operate on larger amounts of land, the economy of scale simply means estate farming can be more profitable in the medium and long term.

At the same time, for many smallholder farmers around the world, there is simply no choice but to operate as part of a co-operative – without the access to infrastructure and other resources in this way, many of them wouldn’t be able to process and effectively sell their coffee.

Ultimately, the size of a producer’s farm largely dictates which farming model they will follow, however, it’s clear that alternative models – such as farmer collectives – are also beginning to emerge.

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Despite its small size (approximately 57,000km²), Togo has a diverse climate. While the northern part of the country is more dry and arid, central Togo is home to many plateaus and mountainous regions which are suitable for coffee production.

Like many other West African countries, Togo’s economy is significantly dependent on agriculture – with coffee, cotton, and cocoa being the major cash crops. Cotton is by far the country’s biggest export, while coffee accounts for around 5% of its export revenue. 

Sadly, a substantial lack of investment in the Togolese coffee sector has forced many farmers to abandon production altogether. In turn, many Togolese coffee plants are becoming older and less productive.

To learn more about Togo’s coffee sector, and the challenges which producers face, I spoke with two local professionals. Read on to find out what they had to say.

You may also like our article exploring coffee production in Sierra Leone.

A brief overview of coffee production in Togo

Compared to other coffee-producing countries in Africa, Togo has a relatively short history of coffee production.

It’s believed that coffee was first cultivated in the country during the 1920s, when the country was under French colonial rule.

For the first few decades, the country’s coffee sector was controlled by several foreign exporters who purchased coffee directly from producers. However, after the formation of the Togo Office of Agricultural Products (OPAT) in 1964, the Togolese government started to oversee and manage production.

According to the International Coffee Organisation (ICO), OPAT was largely responsible for marketing coffee to international markets and setting annual domestic prices for coffee, while domestic marketing was managed by private sector stakeholders. Under this model, former exporters became coffee buyers.

During the 1980s, as per figures from the ICO, coffee production in Togo reached an average of around 260,000 60kg bags per year – a figure that has since steadily decreased for a number of reasons. In the early 1990s, according to the ICO, low coffee prices and less productive farms and plantations led to market liberalisation. Ultimately, this resulted in a number of radical reforms in Togolese coffee production – which included more simplified quality control measures.

Amuzu Koffi Mensah is an operations manager at Café Kloto, a roaster which sources coffee from the Togolese highlands. He tells me that coffee is the country’s second-largest export crop.

“More than 40,000 households in the country work in coffee production,” he says. “The major producing areas are in the southwest of the country in the Agou, Kloto, Danyi, Amou-Okposo plateau, and Wawa regions.”

Today, Togo mainly grows robusta – most of which is grown by smallholder farmers who also produce cocoa. For many years, the country’s robusta was highly sought-after thanks to its high quality, but over time, demand has steadily decreased.

Prior to 2000, the total acreage of Togo’s coffee production was 40,000ha, but this has since halved. Amuzu explains that many coffee trees in the country are very old and have become incapable of producing high yields.

In 2017, the ICO reported that Togo produced 6.9 million tonnes of coffee. However, by 2020, this volume had plummeted to 2.4 million tonnes, representing a drop of nearly 35% over a three-year period.

Many Togolese producers grow an old robusta variety which is locally referred to as “Niaouli”. It’s believed that this robusta variety was first cultivated under colonial rule in the 1920s. 

“After harvesting and drying, coffee is sent to a processing plant,” Amuzu says. “Here, it undergoes natural or washed processing.”

Support for Togolese coffee producers

Historically, there has been a distinct lack of government support for the country’s coffee farmers, which has made it difficult for smallholders to gain access to fertilisers and other agricultural inputs. 

Furthermore, the coffee sector’s market liberalisation has largely favoured more established farmers who grow higher volumes of coffee – granting them more access to finance and resources.

Today, the Coffee and Cocoa Sector Coordinating Committee (CCFCC) is responsible for the management of coffee production in Togo. The CCFCC provides farmers with access to training and education, but its system is largely still more beneficial to larger producers.

Local farmers say that there is support from private sector stakeholders to improve access to agricultural inputs, but this is often minimal. Moreover, demand for these resources remains relatively low as many farmers are unable to afford them.

In recent years, the Coffee and Cocoa Technical Unit (UTCC) developed an extension services system that provides support to farmers in more rural areas. As part of this initiative, trained professionals are sent to coffee farms to assist producers with agricultural best practices.

Currently, the UTCC operates an office in Kpalime – a town in southwest Togo. The office trains specialists for each of the country’s eight administrative districts. In turn, these district specialists train and supervise technical advisors who work in each of the country’s coffee-growing regions.

Marketing and value addition

According to Amuzu, around 98% of Togo’s coffee production is exported, with major importers including France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, and Poland.

However, Covid-19 had a significant impact on the country’s coffee sector, which led to a steep decline in exports. Amuzu also believes that the situation was exacerbated by the mismanagement of funds for its coffee sector. 

“Moreover, domestic coffee consumption remains low because of a lack of technical and financial support,” he adds.

A steady decline in demand for Togolese coffee is undoubtedly adding to existing issues, too. In spite of this, there is a growing focus on increasing domestic consumption of Togolese coffee, with a number of initiatives in place.

Father François Komi Amouzou is the coffee processing manager at the Abbey of the Ascension in Dzogbégan, which is located in Togo’s plateau region. Here, monks have been growing arabica, robusta, and hybrid varieties since the 1970s – largely motivated by the purported medicinal effects of coffee, but also by the number of visitors the monastery receives.

“The original idea was to grow and process coffee for our own consumption, as well as for visitors,” he explains. “However, we then decided to sell roasted coffee for the local community.

“We want local people to experience the flavours of Togolese coffee,” he says. “We currently roast around eight or nine tonnes every year.”

For the most part, the majority of coffee consumed in Togo is instant coffee. Father Francois tells me that there are no coffee shops in the plateau region, but the Abbey is attempting to shift local perceptions about drinking higher-quality coffee.

To help increase local demand for Togolese coffee, the Inter-African Coffee Organisation (IACO) partnered with the CCFCC to establish coffee kiosks in the capital city of Lomé, with plans to extend the project to other areas of the country.

As part of the same initiative, some Togolese roasters take part in training workshops held in Gabon.

Addressing challenges in the sector

Amuzu explains that the lack of technical support for harvesting and post-harvest processing is a serious issue for smallholder producers.

“In addition to this, improving quality control measures is a major challenge in Togo’s coffee sector,” he adds. “There are few local processing units that meet good hygiene standards, and access to finance is also a big issue.”

Furthermore, the sector is also facing a labour shortage. Koffi believes that this is because many young people in the country don’t view coffee production as profitable enough, causing them to search for work opportunities in more urban areas.

To overcome some of these challenges, Togolese authorities largely rely on surplus coffee production that can be sold in the following year. Moreover, the proposed National Development Plan (PND) aims to focus on improving processing methods to add more value to coffee, as well as boosting local consumption.

Amuzu believes that the CCFCC plays an important role in strengthening Togo’s coffee sector – particularly by encouraging more women and young people to take part in coffee production.

He adds that the CCFCC is also directly addressing Togo’s ageing coffee tree population. The committee has so far replanted more 300ha of coffee trees, as well as grafting thousands of seedlings onto existing rootstocks. 

As well as these programmes, the Centre for Agronomic Research for Forest Zones (CRA/F) has cultivated seven new varieties, although volumes are still too low to disseminate to farmers across the country.

Despite many historic and current challenges, the Togolese coffee sector has shown that above all else, it is resilient. And while there is certainly potential for its robusta to increase in quality, more support will certainly be needed to help smallholder farmers in Togo improve their agricultural practices.

With the appropriate level of financial and technical support, Togo’s coffee producers may be able to improve quality and yields, and thereby help to gradually grow the country’s coffee sector. 

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Although it’s by no means a popular coffee origin, Guinea produces significant volumes of robusta – meaning coffee is an important cash crop for the country’s economy.

In the 2015/16 harvest period, the United States Department of Agriculture reported that Guinea’s production of robusta peaked at 280,000 60kg bags.

However, following a devastating Ebola outbreak between 2014 and 2016 in West Africa, more than 2,300 deaths were recorded in Guinea alone. Furthermore, years of political instability and low coffee prices have also kept production volumes low, with some Guinean farmers abandoning coffee production altogether. But recently, several initiatives have launched in the country which are focused on reviving its coffee sector.

To find out more about the potential of Guinea’s coffee sector, I spoke with two local industry experts. Read on to learn more.

You may also like our guide to the coffee sector in Côte d’Ivoire.

An overview of coffee production in Guinea

In 2020, Guinea was the world’s 34th-largest producer of coffee. While the volumes of coffee it grows may be negligible on a global scale, it’s an important crop for many of the country’s farmers.

Coffee is grown in 15 regions across the country, including the Fouta Djallon plateau, the Ziama Massif nature reserve, and the land surrounding Mount Nimba.

Aboubacar Diallo is a coffee producer and an entrepreneur from Guinea. He says that both his father and grandfather were also coffee farmers.

He explains that most coffee farmers in the country are smallholders who own 1ha or less of land. Many of them face challenges with low yields and low prices.

The vast majority of coffee grown in Guinea is robusta, although it’s believed that there are a few farms which also grow arabica, but only on a very small scale. According to the Centre for the Promotion of Imports from developing countries (CBI), arabica was first introduced to the country at some point in the early-to-mid 1900s, but cultivation was relatively unsuccessful.

Several reports claim that certain robusta species are native to Guinea, such as Coffee mauritania, Coffea stenophylla, and Coffea liberica. In fact, one robusta variety known as Ziama-Macenta has received a geographical indication for its high quality and desirable qualities, with some coffee professionals claiming it tastes similar to some arabica varieties.

However, Aboubacar tells me that Ziama-Macenta can be a low-yielding variety.

“It’s a high-quality robusta, but the region it’s grown in is unable to fill even two containers during a harvest season because of low production volumes,” he says.

Antoine Togbodouno is a sustainability and community group leader based in the country’s capital of Conakry. He explains that low coffee yields are a widespread problem in Guinea.

“Coffee is very important to Guinea, but it mainly grows in forested areas,” he says. “A few farmer groups have formed to grow production volumes and establish better marketing, but these are few and far between.”

He adds that many farmers don’t see growing coffee as a priority, meaning that some coffee producers are left with little choice but to form small organisations to receive more support.

Processing

Harvest season typically runs from September to the end of January. However, there are few quality control systems in place, as farmers generally pick both ripe and unripe cherries and process them collectively.

“Although coffee quality can be good in Guinea, farmers need to understand more about best farming practices,” Antoine says.

Many producers don’t have access to suitable drying beds, which means that cherries are often left to dry on patios. This can lead to the coffee taking on undesirable earthy qualities once processed, if farmers aren’t careful.

“After harvesting, many farmers don’t carry out any kind of processing,” Antoine tells me. “Typically, they only dry the cherries and then sell them to buyers, who will then also sell the coffee to other buyers for further processing.”

Where does Guinean coffee end up?

The vast majority of Guinea’s coffee is exported. As a result of a formal lack of best practices for harvesting and processing, many Guinean producers receive very low prices for their coffee.

“There is very little formally-certified specialty coffee in Guinea,” Aboubacar says. “There is potential with the Ziama-Macenta variety, but there are several financial and technical barriers to improve quality.”

Once coffee is transported to cities – typically Macenta, which is close to the border with Liberia – foreign buyers purchase it from local agents. The coffee is then sorted and undergoes minor processing so that it is more suitable and stable for export. 

Lastly, the coffee is sent to warehouses – most of which are located in Conakry – before it is exported. Some of the biggest export markets for Guinean coffee are Algeria, Morocco, and Senegal, with Holland, Germany, France, Belgium, and Italy also buying smaller volumes.

However, there are also claims that because Guinea’s production volumes are so low, some of its exported coffee may actually be from Cote d’Ivoire – indicating a greater lack of traceability across the supply chain.

Consumption

For the most part, Guinea is a tea-drinking country. Most of the country’s tea is imported from Sri Lanka. However, despite this, coffee consumption is still seemingly growing – even if it is at a comparatively slow pace.

“People buy instant coffee drinks from roadside kiosks,” Antoine explains. “In coffee shops, people tend to drink black coffee.”

He adds that it’s more common for men to visit coffee shops than women, which may well be because of a number of sociocultural conventions which are still prominent in the country.

Antoine says that in Lélouma, a town in west-central Guinea, more and more coffee bars are opening.

“They are used as spaces for people to socialise and discuss certain topics, including politics and sports,” he explains.

There is also a growing number of more “formal” coffee shops in Conakry, including Café Monts Nimba which roasts locally-grown arabica and robusta. 

However, Aboubacart tells me that there are few coffee roasters in Guinea. Moreover, he says that there are no formally-trained baristas in the country.

“I want to learn how to be a professional barista,” he says. “I want to serve 100% Guinean coffee and introduce more people to the country’s coffee.”

Addressing the challenges

There’s no doubt that Guinea’s coffee sector faces a significant number of challenges. One of the most prominent issues is a lack of farmer organisations.

“There needs to be more support to organise producers into organisations or co-operatives so they can grow coffee collectively,” Antoine explains. “Producers also need seeds to plant in nurseries so they can replace ageing trees.

“Technical assistance is also very important,” he adds. “We need more formal training on how to best plant seeds and maximise yields.”

Aboubacar agrees, saying that the lack of coffee co-operatives and organisations means there is little incentive for farmers to ask for much needed support. 

Furthermore, a distinct lack of standardised quality control means that producers will continue to experience low yields and low prices.

However, Aboubacar says that a few years ago, the then-president of the country proposed an initiative to revive arabica production in northern Guinea – which has a similar climate to the highlands of Kenya and Ethiopia. 

While some seeds were imported from Rwanda, there has been little progress made with boosting Guinea’s arabica production. Moreover, the country’s Ebola Recovery Plan focused significantly on increasing overall coffee production, but efforts have been largely unsuccessful so far.

Aboubacar says he isn’t particularly optimistic about the future of the country’s coffee sector. 

“If conditions don’t improve, I anticipate that production volumes will continue to decrease over the years because farmers are becoming less interested in growing coffee,” he tells me. “It’s a lot of hard work with few rewards, including low prices.”

Following years of political instability and the devastating Ebola outbreak, Guinea’s coffee sector continues to struggle. While there is certainly potential for it to grow larger volumes of higher-quality coffee (including arabica), a lack of adequate government oversight, agricultural best practices, and quality control means more support is essential.

Ultimately, there needs to be more emphasis on forming coffee co-operatives and organisations to strengthen the country’s coffee sector, but it’s evident that these efforts will take some time.

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Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan are the seven members of the regional East African Community intergovernmental organisation. Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Seychelles, Somalia, and Sudan are also part of the region as far as geography is concerned.

A large proportion of East African coffee workers are women. In fact, in 2018, the International Coffee Organisation (ICO) reported that up to 70% of labour in coffee production is carried out by women, although this number can vary between countries and regions.

Despite making up a significant proportion of the coffee labour workforce, East African women often earn substantially less money than their male counterparts. This is largely a result of prejudiced misconceptions about womens’ roles in decision making, as well as a lack of progress in improving womens’ access to finance.

To understand more about the role of women in East African production, I spoke to two local industry professionals. Read on for their insight into how gender equality can be improved in East Africa’s coffee sector.

You may also like our article exploring how improving gender equity can benefit coffee production.

Women in agriculture in East Africa

Simply put, women play an essential role in agriculture across East Africa. According to USAID’s East African Gender Fact Sheet, up to 96% of women in Burundi, 76% in Kenya, 84% in Rwanda, 71% in Tanzania, and 77% in Uganda work in agriculture – including the countries’ respective coffee sectors. 

However, it’s important to note each country’s agricultural exports can vary widely – meaning we need to account for these differences.

In many cases, women carry out the majority of physical labour in East African coffee farms – including harvesting, pruning, weeding, and removing ageing plants. 

Lorraine Girinka is the Communications Director at Kahawa Link Company (KALICO), a woman-owned coffee company in Burundi. 

“In Burundi, women have some of the most important roles in coffee production, from planting seeds to harvesting cherries,” she says. “Women are largely responsible for ensuring that coffee plants grow healthily. 

“Even if a farm is owned by a woman and her husband, it is mostly women who have to take care of the coffee plants,” she adds.

In line with a number of traditional sociocultural norms in East Africa, men are generally the owners of these coffee farms, and the coffee plants as a result. Ultimately, this means that even if women work on these farms, men in the industry are more likely to hold important decision-making roles, and receive more of the profit.

Max Peters is a coffee professional in Tanzania. 

“A lot of Tanzanian farms are owned by male heads of households, but when it comes to carrying out manual labour, this is largely the responsibility of women,” he explains.

According to a report by Farming First, Ugandan women carry out up to 58% of fieldwork labour on coffee farms, and up to 72% of post-harvest processing.

Despite the unequal distribution of physical labour, male coffee workers often make more money than their female counterparts. For instance, the Specialty Coffee Association’s 2015 report on gender equity in East Africa found that on average, men earned more than US $700 harvesting coffee, while women made less than US $450. 

Although this is a result of many complex issues, the economic gap between men and women is largely because of several disadvantages and prejudices that women and girls face – including a lack of access to financial resources, education, and decision-making roles.

Why are women excluded from decision-making roles and access to finance?

Issues surrounding gender inequity are highly complex, but can partly be attributed to social and cultural misconceptions and prejudices about women being in leadership positions.

“My mother, who worked in coffee production, would tell me about the challenges she had to overcome simply because of being a woman,” Max says. “Some men would claim that it would be too difficult for her to hold a leadership role in coffee production because of bureaucracy and paperwork, and it would be easier to pay a man to deal with these matters on her behalf.

“But the same men who refused my mother access to decision-making roles and financial resources would gladly welcome me to their training workshops [because I’m male],” he adds.

In some coffee-growing countries, the exclusion of women in senior roles has been an institutional problem for some time now. For instance, some coffee co-operatives in the region implement policies and regulations which make women feel unwelcome, while others provide no growth opportunities for women.

Moreover, to join a co-operative as a member, applicants are generally required to own at least a few coffee plants. Considering how ownership often works for coffee plants and farms in East Africa, this presents a significant barrier.

“It’s a common social and cultural norm in East Africa that coffee farms have to be inherited by male members of a family,” Max explains. “In Tanzania, it’s difficult for women to own coffee farms, even if they have the financial means to do so.

“In some parts of central Tanzania, it’s almost impossible for a woman to own a farm,” he adds. “This area includes a lot of inherited parcels of land, and only men are allowed to inherit them.”

Max adds that women are able to inherit parcels of land, but only from their husbands and not from their families. Ultimately, this is an issue which only further contributes to placing more value on a woman once she marries a man.

Lorraine tells me many of these problems are a result of a formal lack of education for women and girls.

“Women and girls are not encouraged to attend school, so they grow coffee in order to earn some money for their families,” she explains. “They are also not empowered enough to run their own coffee businesses.

“Burundian women aren’t encouraged or valued enough to take up positions of leadership in coffee production, especially women from more rural areas,” she adds.

Furthermore, because of social and cultural traditions which require women to carry out the vast majority (if not all) of childcare and household duties, women often have little time to take part in other activities.

Is gender equity improving in East African coffee production?

First and foremost, it’s important to note that improving gender equity anywhere in the world is an arduous task that requires massive shifts in social and cultural mindsets and practices.

“We need to change these mindsets,” Max says.

He explains that because women have been so vital to the production of coffee in East Africa for so long, many of them possess invaluable expertise and experience in coffee production. He adds that their male counterparts need to recognise the value of this knowledge and expertise.

However, gender equity is about much more social and cultural beliefs; improving womens’ access to finance and resources is also vital.

In recent years, more and more co-operative societies are starting to offer training and technical support to women in the coffee industry – helping to improve their access to resources and education. 

As well as this, there is the support of several women’s coffee organisations, notably the International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA). In fact, several East African countries have their own IWCA chapters, including Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Burundi.

In Uganda, several non-governmental organisations like Farm Africa are providing women with better access to different markets, as well as encouraging them to join coffee co-operatives, take on more leadership roles, and make changes to decision-making dynamics within their own households.

The Tanzania Women in Coffee Association also carries out similar work to Farm Africa, but membership growth has been slower – showing that more work still needs to be done in Tanzania’s coffee sector.

In Kenya, the Gender Value Chain Training for Kenyan Women Coffee Farmers programme focuses on training women to carry out best agricultural practices and processing practices.

Meanwhile, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (which is reportedly one of the most economically vulnerable countries in the world), non-profit organisations such as On The Ground run gender equity training programmes.

The work of such organisations allows women coffee workers to collaboratively overcome the challenges they collectively face – allowing women to empower themselves. 

By providing women with the best practices for weeding, pruning, mulching, harvesting, and processing, they can carry out these practices more effectively – potentially increasing yields and quality.

Ultimately, however, women are still vastly under-represented in many East African coffee co-operatives. As a direct response to this, some women are establishing their own women-only cooperatives to ensure they have a more equal role to men in regards to financial access in coffee production.

How does improving gender equity benefit the wider coffee industry?

Besides the obvious importance of improving gender equity to better support and embolden women and their families, there are a number of clear benefits for the global coffee industry.

It’s believed that across the Bean Belt, women lead somewhere between 5% and 30% of all coffee-growing households. This means that when access to education and resources improves for these women farmers, coffee quality and yields increase in turn.

The ICO estimates that closing the gender gap in coffee production could increase global output by up to 4% – the equivalent of 30 billion extra cups of coffee per year. And considering the ICO halved its 2020/21 global coffee surplus earlier this year, boosting global coffee production has never been so important.

Coffee production in some East African countries has also been waning in recent years, particularly Kenya and Tanzania, yet it still retains its importance for both countries’ economies.

Moreover, with an ageing coffee farmer population and the younger generations’ general lack of interest in coffee production, it’s clear that coffee production as a whole across East Africa would benefit from having more women in positions of leadership and decision making.

Lorraine expresses concern that in the face of so many difficulties, women in coffee production across East Africa may be reluctant to challenge the status quo.

“​Even educated women don’t have the chance to get more involved in coffee production,” she laments. “Burundian women haven’t been given the opportunity to see themselves in leadership roles.”

Ultimately, in order to create a truly sustainable global coffee industry, women need to be more involved in all aspects of the supply chain – including women in East Africa. While there is still certainly work to be done here, as there is elsewhere across the world, the growing presence of women-led and focused organisations provides some hope. 

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Many popular coffee varieties in Kenya include SL-28 and SL-34, which were first introduced to the country’s farmers more than 90 years ago. While SL varieties are high quality, they are also highly susceptible to various pests and diseases – making them difficult for farmers to grow.

However, as part of a wider discussion on introducing more disease-resistant and climate-resilient varieties to Kenya’s coffee sector, farmers are starting to grow others. One of these is Ruiru 11 – a high-yielding dwarf F1 hybrid which is more resistant to a number of pests and diseases.

To find out more about Ruiru 11, and whether or not it will become more widespread, I spoke to two local coffee farmers. Read on to learn what they had to say.

You may also like our article exploring two popular Kenyan coffee varieties: SL-28 and SL-34.

The origins of Ruiru 11

As with many other hybrid varieties, Ruiru 11 was developed because of the increasing prevalence of pests and diseases. The most prominent example was a coffee berry disease (CBD) epidemic in 1968, which destroyed around half of Kenya’s coffee production that year.

CBD is caused by the Colletotrichum fungus, which turns cherries brown or black – leading to rot and premature drying. Ultimately, this has a detrimental impact on a coffee plant’s yield and quality.

In response to rising cases of CBD, a coffee station in Ruiru began breeding coffee varieties in the 1970s which were more resistant to the disease – as well as still producing satisfactory volumes of high-quality coffee.

One of these varieties was Ruiru 11 – a disease-resistant dwarf F1 hybrid which could be grown at different altitudes. According to World Coffee Research, the variety was developed using genetic material from many different varieties – including a Catimor female parent and a selection of K7, SL-28, N39, and Sudan Rume male parents.

These varieties were largely chosen for their higher levels of resistance against CBD, as well as coffee leaf rust (CLR) – a fungus which eventually kills coffee plants. However, alongside their disease resistance, these varieties also give Ruiru 11 a reputation for high yields and good quality coffee.

When was Ruiru 11 first planted?

Ruiru 11 was first introduced to Kenyan coffee farmers in 1985, which marked a significant change for the country’s coffee sector.

Compared with other varieties, which are more slow-growing, Ruiru 11 generally produces its first harvest within two years of planting. Its plants are also small and compact, which means producers can grow more of them in a smaller area.

Watson Wanjau is a coffee farmer in Kenya, who has been producing the variety for the past decade.

“I grow Ruiru 11 on some small parcels of land,” he says. “Because you can plant the variety closer together than others, such as SL-28 and SL-34, you can increase productivity.”

He adds that Ruiru 11 requires fewer fungicides and fertilisers than other popular varieties in Kenya – meaning it’s typically more affordable for farmers to grow than SL varieties.

One of the most significant ways in which Ruiru 11 has proliferated is through top-working. This is when farmers graft new plant material of one variety onto an established root system of another – essentially eliminating the need for producers to plant more Ruiru 11 seeds.

“Top-working is the easiest way of helping more farmers grow Ruiru 11,” Watson explains. “Producers can utilise the already established root systems to convert their plants.”

However, he adds that top-working is still a new concept for many Kenyan coffee farmers, so the level of success can vary widely depending on the producers’ experience levels. Furthermore, rootstock grafting is a complex process which usually requires the assistance of specialists.

In light of this, Watson suggests that producers should first plant Batian, which has some of the same parents as Ruiru 11. Farmers can then graft Ruiru 11 scions (the term for offshoots and twigs) onto the root systems of Batian to make top-working easier.

Are more Kenyan farmers growing the variety?

Symon Sogomo is a coffee farmer at Sogomo Coffee Estate in Trans-Nzoia County, Kenya. The farm grows three varieties, including Ruiru 11, Batian, and some SL plants. 

He explains that when it comes to planting more Ruiru 11, some of the country’s older farmers are somewhat apprehensive – especially when growing Batian for top-working.

“There is a noticeable difference in how Batian and Ruiru 11 both grow,” he explains. 

Kenya’s main annual coffee harvest runs from March to July. So while Batian is a high-yielding plant, it can sometimes produce less coffee in the following harvest – especially if yields were high in the previous year.

“But whenever a new variety is introduced, it will always be viewed differently initially,” he adds. “When I asked some older farmers about when Ruiru 11 was first introduced, they said that farmers didn’t know how to grow it and agronomists didn’t know how to manage it.”

Under optimal conditions, producers can grow up to 3,000 Ruiru 11 plants per hectare, which will produce a consistently high volume of cherries – providing farmers with a number of benefits.

Ultimately, this, as well as other reasons, has led to a sharp rise in demand for the variety.

“It is a variety which Kenyan coffee farmers fully support,” he says. “It was developed in Ruiru, so it is Kenyan variety, rather than others which were brought over by colonists.”

However, as certified Ruiru 11 seeds must be sourced from the Coffee Research Foundation in Kenya (along with all other seeds in the country), supply has not been able to meet demand. Moreover, the research institute has started to shift its focus towards cultivating Batian in recent years.

“My coffee-growing region is relatively young compared to other areas in Kenya, so we plant more Batian than Ruiru 11,” Watson says. “However, many farmers want to plant Ruiru 11, but they can’t source the seedlings.”

At his nursery, Watson tells me he and his team grow Ruiru 11 seedlings obtained from the Coffee Research Foundation. They also supply seedlings to other local farmers to help boost the variety’s production.

Understanding the challenges of Ruiru 11 production

Although there are clear advantages to growing Ruiru 11, some Kenyan farmers are concerned that its quality is not as high as the SL varieties – potentially resulting in lower prices.

Symon, meanwhile, believes that few consumers would be able to taste the difference between Ruiru 11 and SL varieties. He says this is largely because the former is still considered a “young” variety in Kenya, so its sensory profile is still yet to be fully explored.

However, one of the bigger concerns around Ruiru 11 is its susceptibility to certain pests and diseases – despite the drive behind its cultivation and its supposed resilience.

As Ruiru 11 is often grown alongside other varieties, pests and diseases can actually spread more easily than initially thought to plants in some cases.

“We have had some unusual cases of CLR and CBD on Ruiru 11 plants,” Symon tells me. “Agronomists told us that the genetic materials for these plants were probably not selected to a high enough standard.

“Ruiru 11 which is 100% genetically accurate should be completely resistant to both of these diseases,” he adds.

Watson says that there have been more cases of CBD affecting Ruiru 11 plants, but expert agronomists have warned producers to not treat the plants accordingly. This is largely because the effects of CBD on Ruiru 11 are often non-threatening. 

“We were advised to collect and burn the affected cherries,” he tells me. “However, these cases are still concerning because when it was first introduced, Ruiru 11 experienced these issues. 

“We hope that it is just a normal reaction to being planted with other, more traditional varieties,” he adds.

Alongside a small number of unusual CBD cases, Ruiru 11 is also sensitive to drought stress. The variety’s higher yields are contingent on a significant amount of water – a growing issue considering the rising number of Kenya’s droughts in recent years.

“Producers growing Ruiru 11 need to have an alternative source of water if rainfall is lower than expected,” Watson says. “To produce healthy cherries, the variety needs a lot of water, so it’s important to also have large irrigation tanks and systems in place.”

Looking to the future

Considering the increasing demand for Ruiru 11 seeds in Kenya, it’s more than likely that production volumes will grow in the coming years. However, this is mostly dependent on whether seeds will become available to more farmers.

Watson hopes that the Coffee Research Foundation will address this problem in the near future, mainly by cultivating more seeds and increasing producers’ access to them.

He emphasises that top-working is one of the ways in which farmers can supply themselves – and potentially others – with more Ruiru 11 plants.

“More than half of our Ruiru 11 plants were cultivated using top-working,” he says. “Most other Ruiru 11 farmers have done the same.

“Moreover, top-working seems to be working better and better every year,” he adds.

Although top-working can be complex and difficult, if supply chain stakeholders invest in teaching Kenyan coffee farmers the best practices for this process, the country’s Ruiru 11 production could certainly grow.

Thanks to its generally solid tolerance for a range of major diseases, there is no doubt that Ruiru 11 will continue to be prominent across Kenyan coffee production. Its increased resilience, as well as its high yields and cup quality, make it well worth growing for many of the country’s farmers.

Some researchers and producers also believe that as the variety evolves, it will continue to acclimate to Kenya’s soil and climatic conditions, and more research about how to best cultivate it will be summarily conducted. However, ultimately, whether or not this happens will all depend on one thing – seed availability.

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Between the 1960s and 1980s, Sierra Leone produced around 20,000 tonnes of coffee per year. However, following a civil war in 1991, most coffee farms were abandoned, and subsequently, production volumes sharply declined.

Despite the conflict ending in the early 2000s, coffee production unfortunately never reached the levels seen in previous decades. Furthermore, low coffee prices at that time meant many producers had little incentive to continue growing coffee.

According to Index Mundi, Sierra Leone is expected to produce around 50,000 60kg bags of green coffee in the 2021/22 harvest season – more than a 33% decrease on the previous year. But is there hope of the country’s production volumes increasing in the coming years?

To find out, I spoke with Wahlid Basoon and Dr. Jeremy Haggar. Read on to find out what they had to say about Sierra Leone’s coffee sector.

You may also like our article on Coffea stenophylla.

An overview of coffee production in Sierra Leone

Dr. Jeremy Haggar is a Professor of Agroecology at the University of Greenwich. He also co-wrote Lost and Found: Coffea stenophylla and C. affinis, the Forgotten Coffee Crop Species of West Africa with Dr. Aaron Davis of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

He tells me about the history of Sierra Leone’s coffee industry.

“Prior to the civil war in 1991, coffee production volumes were higher than cocoa,” he says. “Now, there are many abandoned coffee farms, mostly in the northeastern province of the country.”

Walid Bahsoon is an entrepreneur in Sierra Leone. 

“Most of the coffee plants in Sierra Leone today were planted before the war,” he says. “A lack of funds means farmers aren’t able to buy fertilisers, so their yields have dropped. 

“However, there are some initiatives which support farmers to plant new seedlings and increase production,” he adds. “There is more than enough arable land in Sierra Leone [to accommodate for more coffee plants]”. 

Jeremy says that in 2013, an EU-funded programme was launched in Sierra Leone in an attempt to rehabilitate abandoned coffee farms. The project involved carrying out intensive pruning of ageing coffee plants, as well as providing producers with more farm inputs (such as fertilisers). While there may have been some levels of success from the initiative, production volumes still remain low.

Coffee in Sierra Leone is mainly grown in the Eastern province, which covers Kenema, Kailahun, and KonoKono. Other notable coffee growing areas in the country include the districts of Pujuhem, Koinadugu and Tonkolili, Moyamba, and Bo.

The majority of coffee production is carried out by third or fourth-generation smallholder farmers. The average size of a coffee farm in the country is 4ha, according to the International Coffee Organisation.

“Harvesting is mostly done by hand,” Walid tells me.

Coffee is harvested between December and March in Sierra Leone. After picking, the cherries are placed on patios to dry. However, because of higher levels of rainfall in late March, cherries harvested during this time are not able to reach the optimal moisture level (between 10% and 12%) for export.

As a result of this, as well as other complex reasons, Sierra Leone isn’t known for producing high-quality coffee – despite its potential to do so.

“Most of the country’s smallholder producers grow coffee on small parcels of land, so productivity is low,” Jeremy explains. “The co-operative model for coffee in the country is not fully developed because the market for cocoa is bigger.”

For example, Sierra Leone earned US $47.3 million in cocoa exports in 2020, compared to US $4.79 million in coffee earnings in the same year.

Most coffee grown in the country is naturally processed, as most farmers pick the beans and dry them as cherry on their farms. There have been attempts to establish washing stations, but many have been unsuccessful. Jeremy says this is because it would require significant restructuring of the country’s coffee market, as well as training and providing resources to farmers

“Producers would have to invest a lot more in harvesting,” he explains. “There would need to be a big incentive for them to do this successfully, [but currently there isn’t because coffee prices remain low.]”

Sierra Leone’s “lost” coffee species

However, despite the fact that coffee production in Sierra Leone faces its own share of challenges, some believe there are signs that it could help to offer diversification in the specialty coffee industry. 

This is largely thanks to the rediscovery of Coffea stenophylla, a wild-growing coffee species which is native to West Africa.

The species was first scientifically described in 1834. It’s widely believed that it was cultivated at scale as early as the late 19th century, along with liberica, another species native to West Africa. 

Between 2017 and 2019, a research team from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew travelled across Sierra Leone to find wild-growing stenophylla plants. Prior to their trip, the last official sighting of the coffee species was in 1954.

Although initial fieldwork was unsuccessful, the researchers eventually found a small population of stenophylla plants growing at a low elevation. Researchers concluded that stenophylla was more resilient than arabica, mainly because it could withstand higher temperatures.

There has been little sensory or agronomic evaluation of stenophylla. However, in the years since discovering more stenophylla plants, a small sample of green beans were sent to Union Hand Roasted Coffee in London, who roasted and cupped the coffee. Their Q graders scored the coffee as equivalent to specialty grade on an arabica scale, although the exact score hasn’t been confirmed.

Today, Sierra Leone primarily produces robusta, but stenophylla is still grown on a small number of farms – although production volumes are negligible.

How is coffee marketed and traded?

Compared to other West African countries, Sierra Leone’s coffee market is significantly less developed.

In previous years, the country’s coffee exports and farmgate prices were regulated by the Sierra Leone Produce Marketing Board. Unfortunately, the country’s farmgate prices were lower than the global average price at the time – which was another reason for the widespread decline in coffee production.  Today, it is believed that farmgate prices in Sierra Leone are around 40% to 50% of the global average price. 

Wahlid says up to 80% of the country’s coffee is exported, and can now be directly purchased by private companies. International traders buy between 70% and 75% of annual production volumes, while the remaining volumes are purchased by local traders or “unofficial” exporters. 

The latter are traders who don’t officially (or legally) declare where the green coffee is being shipped to. Walid tells me that most of this coffee is smuggled to neighbouring countries, such as Liberia and Guinea – where it most likely cannot be traced back to Sierra Leone.

Exporters sometimes have buying agents visit farms around three to four months prior to harvest. These agents can lend money to producers, usually based on the premise that the farmer will provide them with a certain volume of coffee.

It’s also common for buying agents from neighbouring countries to visit farms before the harvest period begins. However, these agents are only allowed to purchase up to 25% of the total harvest.

During the harvest season, buying agents will collect coffee from farms, pay the producers, and then transport the coffee to a consolidating agent. This agent will combine all the coffee together into trucks and ship it to exporters – which can result in less of a focus on quality control.

Coffee consumption in Sierra Leone

Despite its long history of coffee production, consumption remains low in Sierra Leone. For most people in the country, coffee is seen as a luxury item.

Those who do drink it usually prepare coffee by boiling roasted whole beans or ground coffee in a large pot. Street vendors often sell this from kiosks in larger cities and towns.

Walid says instant coffee products are also popular.

“Instant Nescafé products imported from the Ivory Coast were first introduced to Sierra Leone in 2010,” he tells me. “These products are affordable and convenient, [so more people are buying them].”

However, Jeremy says that coffee consumption is starting to develop in the country.

“There is a developing coffee culture in Sierra Leone,” he tells me. “There are two or three roasters and coffee shops in Freetown, which is the capital city,” he says. 

“They also brew and sell coffee grown in the country,” he adds.

Walid explains that consumption of coffee typically increases significantly during Ramadan, when Muslim people pray for extended periods. This is mainly because coffee can be used as an appetite suppressant during fasting periods.

Addressing challenges in the sector

There are many difficulties which face coffee farmers in Sierra Leone, but one of the most significant issues is child labour.

A 2021 report from the US Department of Labor found that more than 35% of children aged between five and 14 in Sierra Leone are being forced to work. And while the report stated that the country’s government had made “‘moderate’ advancement in efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour”, there is still much progress to be made to end child labour altogether.

Beyond child labour, Jeremy says that low production volumes and interest in coffee production remains key issues, too.

“There is plenty of demand for cocoa, so production volumes are high for this cash crop,” he says. “The cocoa market receives more investment and has higher standards of quality control, but this has not happened for the coffee sector. 

“There is the capacity to grow Sierra Leone’s coffee sector, but current market conditions can’t support the growth,” he adds. 

Despite this, Jeremy tells me that the country’s government is interested in developing the industry.

Wahlid, meanwhile, agrees, but says the government needs to provide further support.

“In previous years, the government set a universal farmgate price that was calculated in a way to maximise its revenue,” he says. “However, the government currently does not dictate farmgate prices, so the market regulates itself.”

While this market model may work in other coffee-producing countries, it’s clear that both investment and policy are needed if Sierra Leone’s coffee industry is to develop. At present, there are no policies in place encouraging banks to provide long-term loans to farm workers. While short-term credit facilities are available, interest rates can often exceed 25%.

Some NGOs and overseas governments are doing what they can to support coffee production in the country. For instance, earlier this year, the European Union launched the Boosting Agriculture and Food Security (BAFS) project. Among other pledges, the programme aims to provide more support to supply chain actors in Sierra Leone’s coffee, cocoa, and cashew agricultural industries.

In addition to this, the World Bank is currently running several initiatives in the country. These include a Smallholder Commercialisation and Agribusiness Development Project which hopes to “foster productive business linkages between smallholder farmers and selected agribusiness firms and other commodity off-takers”.

Following decades of conflict and political instability, Sierra Leone’s coffee sector continues to struggle. While there is certainly potential for it to grow higher-quality coffee, a lack of adequate finance, legislation, and government oversight means more support is essential.

Furthermore, while there is interest from the specialty coffee sector in Coffea stenophylla, any attempts to scale coffee production will certainly require more investment and interest.

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However, the country’s coffee production has been steadily declining since the 1990s for a number of reasons. These include a widening generational gap in coffee farming and the increasing prevalence of several pests and diseases.

Some coffee professionals believe that for Kenyan coffee production to return to its former heights, however, change must occur at a policy level. Some steps have already been taken to change the structure of the country’s coffee sector – most notably the country’s Coffee Bill 2021.

To learn more about this bill, other proposed reforms, and how they might affect the Kenyan coffee sector, I spoke with two local coffee professionals. Read on to find out what they had to share with me.

You may also like our article exploring the role of a Kenyan coffee marketing agent.

A brief overview of Kenya’s coffee sector

According to the Kenyan Agriculture And Food Authority, coffee was grown on around 119,000ha of land in 2019, making it one of Kenya’s biggest cash crops.

The vast majority of Kenyan coffee is sold on the Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE), which is organised by the country’s Exchange Management Committee. Every Tuesday, an auction takes place, unless the volumes of coffee brought to auction are too low.

The NCE system works in a unique way. After harvesting cherries, farmers transport them to a local washing station, which is usually operated by a co-operative. The co-operative then sends the coffee to a dry mill where it is assigned a unique tracking number – known as an “out-turn number” in Kenya.

Once the green coffee is milled, graded, and packaged in jute bags, it is handed over to a coffee marketing agent. This person will prepare a catalogue of the coffees available for auction, and will pass this on to traders at the NCE.

Like most auctions, buyers place bids for coffee which are available on the trading floor. The highest bidder will receive the particular lot they want to purchase.

Once payment is complete, a warehouse worker where the coffee is being stored will issue a “warrant”. This provides the buyer with formal ownership of the particular coffee.

However, some coffee professionals are critical of the NCE system – particularly producers and other stakeholders who work at the beginning of the supply chain. This is largely because it is the responsibility of marketing agents to pay farmers, and payments can sometimes be delayed for months.

Furthermore, the number of people involved in the supply chain ultimately reduces final payments for producers as other supply chain actors take a percentage.

The co-operative model in Kenya has also come under criticism in recent years. As co-ops receive the money once a coffee is sold, deduct fees, and then remit money to individual members (per kg of coffee), it can sometimes lead to disagreements and discontent over the amounts received.

Kevin Karuga is a coffee farmer in Kenya. He believes that reforms are overdue in the Kenyan coffee sector.

“The management of co-ops should be transparent so that they can account for the money paid to farmers,” he says. “Reforms are necessary because the coffee industry is meant to benefit all actors in the value chain.”

Are reforms necessary?

As a result of the issues which Kenyan coffee production faces, many in the sector are calling for more reforms. 

However, in response to a range of criticisms, the Kenyan government has implemented a range of new measures in recent years.

One of the most significant changes to the country’s coffee sector was the introduction of the “Second Window” in 2006 – effectively a direct trade system in Kenya. This means international roasters and traders were able to buy coffee directly from producers in the country, although the system is still largely unused.

Lucy Wanjugu is a coffee farmer in Kenya.

“When the ‘Second Window’ was introduced, some farmers thought they would receive more money, but this has not been the case,” she says. “Farmers are the most vulnerable to low coffee prices, so if we don’t have a system in place to ensure reforms work then [Kenya’s coffee industry cannot grow].”

Another major reform was the Coffee Bill 2020, which was instituted in October 2020 as an effort to streamline the supply chain. Some of the changes the bill enacted included ending some coffee trade licensing requirements, as well as removing some supply chain intermediaries.

However, despite these reforms, many issues still pervade in the Kenyan coffee sector. 

As with a number of other African coffee origins, the average age of Kenyan coffee farmers continues to rise. Ultimately, this will mean producers could become less physically able to carry out labour on coffee farms in the long term, and also means that the industry is at risk of losing hard-earned expertise without a clear succession plan.

To exacerbate this problem, many younger people in Kenya are migrating to urban areas in search of different lines of work. In many cases, younger generations aren’t as interested in coffee production, largely because it isn’t viewed as financially stable or viable.

Furthermore, increasing rates of urban development near Kenya’s larger cities means there is less land available for coffee production. 

This has led some smallholder farmers to lease land instead of purchasing it for themselves. While leasing land can have its benefits, there are also some downsides – notably disagreements between producers and landowners about plant ownership and harvest payments at the end of the lease.

Understanding the Coffee Bill 2020

Considering most of Kenya’s coffee is still not sold via the “Second Window”, the Coffee Bill 2020 has arguably had the most impact on the country’s coffee industry.

One of the most prominent changes was the formation of the Coffee Board of Kenya. The board allows producers to provide their insight through appointed members of co-operatives and registered estate associations.

“Farmer representation on the board is a positive thing, but if the representatives don’t have our interests in mind then there will be no benefits,” Lucy says.

The Coffee Bill 2020 also seeks to establish the Kenya Coffee Council, which will aim to provide advice and guidance to the Coffee Board and national government, as well as advocating for smallholder producers.

However, the new bill has also implemented some positive changes on the ground.

Smallholder farmers no longer need to own five acres of coffee to obtain a licence for a pulping station. Instead, they must own two and a half acres – making licensing more accessible for some farmers to diversify their income.

The bill also provides more support to the Coffee Research Institute (CRI), which is working to develop more climate, pest, and disease-resistant coffee varieties.

In an effort to streamline the supply chain, local county authorities can also now issue relevant licences and registrations, as well as having the means to establish funding and support programmes for producers. These projects may cover new infrastructure projects, technical assistance, or market access.

“In theory, anyone who wants to open a coffee business will have easier access to the licence and registration offices,” Kevin explains.

In terms of financial stability, changes made by the Coffee Bill 2020 should also allow producers to reliably receive a higher income

Prior to the introduction of the bill, only marketing agents were licensed to sell coffee at the NCE. Now, however, “grower marketers” and millers can also oversee transactions.

Furthermore, under the new regulations, washing station owners are prohibited from receiving money on behalf of farmers. Instead, all payments to dry mill operators, marketing agents, washing station workers, and individual farmers will come from the Direct Settlement System.

Payments to factories or societies from the Direct Settlement system for operations and maintenance is capped at 5% of the value of coffee sold, including the milling, warehousing, and marketing costs, or the actual cost of running a factory or society over the previous crop year – whichever is lower.

“When farmers receive payments directly into their accounts, they stand to gain more,” Lucy says. “The new rules state that the money should be deposited into our accounts within seven days.”

She also tells me that reforms mean marketing agents and dry mill operators are no longer authorised to offer loans to producers.

“These loans are part of the reason why co-operatives can fail and why farmers can receive less money,” she explains. “Our grower assets used to be kept as collateral, but then payments were low, which meant assets were used to recover the loans.”

What changes could be made in the future?

Currently, the Coffee Bill 2021 is still undergoing public participation with supply chain stakeholders, farmer representatives, local leaders, and government officials.

However, there are already some disagreements between the proposed reforms between the two bills. As a result of this, producers are calling for more crossover between the two bills, as there are still opportunities for them to remain economically vulnerable.

And although the Kenyan Coffee Producers Association claims producers are satisfied with current coffee prices, it is also requesting that the bills complement one another more effectively.

So how might the country’s coffee industry change in the coming years?

While these proposed reforms could well improve outcomes for smallholder producers in the Kenyan coffee sector, they have been met with some opposition.

Several court injunctions have prevented the implementation of certain other legislative developments, too. Kevin explains that there have been a number of delays at a policy and implementation level.

“It has prevented the development of the country’s coffee sector and some smallholder farmers have suffered as a consequence,” he says.

Furthermore, many smallholders in Kenya continue to struggle with illiteracy and a lack of formal coffee training opportunities. In order for the reforms to be truly effective, they need to address these problems.

As well as this, encouraging younger generations to become more involved in coffee production will definitely be essential.

“More young people should be leading the coffee sector,” Kevin concludes.

Although many of these reforms are yet to be implemented, both of the Coffee Bills 2020 and 2021 certainly have the potential to improve outcomes for Kenyan coffee farmers.

However, more formal education is needed, especially for smallholder producers who struggle with market access, financial literacy, and existing infrastructure problems.

Ultimately, if these reforms can offer a step towards restoring Kenya’s coffee industry to its former glory, then perhaps they can set out a policy pathway for recovery.

Enjoyed this? Then read our article explaining the Nairobi Coffee Exchange.

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The East African coffee origin produces both arabica and robusta in significant volumes. However, as a result of this, Tanzania has rejected other countries’ grading standards, and instead developed its own unique classification system.

Classifications for Tanzanian coffee depend on a number of factors, including species, bean size and density, processing method, and cup characteristics.

To learn more, I spoke with local coffee professionals. Read on for their insight on how coffee is graded and classified in Tanzania.

You may also like our guide to Tanzanian coffee production.

An overview of coffee production in Tanzania

Tanzania produces both arabica and robusta, with the former accounting for up to 70% of the country’s total coffee production volumes. Some of the most common arabica varieties include SC 3, SC 11, SC 14, SC 9, and KP 423.

Most of the arabica in the country is planted in the Southern Highlands, which includes the Mbeya and Songwe regions. Arabica is also produced in northern Tanzania, including on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru. In more northern regions of the country, the main growing areas are Moshi, Arusha, Tarime, and Kigoma. 

Both the Southern Highlands and northern parts of Tanzania generally receive higher levels of rainfall and have cooler temperatures, resulting in more ideal growing conditions for arabica.

Robusta, on the other hand, is primarily produced in northwestern Tanzania, including areas close to Lake Victoria in Kagera. This region generally experiences higher temperatures which are more suited to growing robusta. 

Despite being Africa’s fourth-largest coffee producer, Tanzanian coffee farmers have experienced a number of difficulties over the past several decades – such as a rise in cases of coffee wilt disease in the 1990s, a widening generational gap in coffee production, and low farmgate prices.

What affects coffee quality in Tanzania?

Lucia Njau is a Q grader based in Tanzania. She explains that coffee quality can unfortunately vary significantly in the country.

Historically, Lucia says that some Tanzanian farmers used to add seeds and beans after their coffee was dry milled to increase the weight and artificially inflate their yield. 

However, she notes that this problem has been mitigated in recent years as producers have become more educated about post-harvest processes.

Processing in Tanzania

Processing has a significant impact on coffee quality in Tanzania. Lucia explains that most robusta farmers use one type of processing method.

“Last year, some producers processed washed robusta, but the majority of them use natural processing methods,” she says. “There is still a lack of knowledge about washed processing, so most farmers use natural processing because they believe it to be less expensive and easier to carry out.”

Tanzanian arabica farmers, meanwhile, tend to produce fully washed coffees, which are processed at central pulping units (CPUs) run by co-operatives.

Johnstone Mgangi is a coffee exporter and quality control professional, with extensive experience in the Tanzanian coffee industry.

He says that while interest in washed robusta is growing, the Tanzanian Coffee Board is attempting to implement best practices for processing methods in the country’s coffee sector as a means of improving quality.

Depulping is also a key step for quality control, especially for washed coffees.

However, some smallholders in Tanzania own their own hand pulpers, which allows them to remove flesh of the cherry without sending coffee to a CPU. In Tanzania, these are referred to as home processed (HP) coffees.

After depulping, HP coffees are usually fermented between 24 to 48 hours before being dried. According to Lucia, one of the biggest challenges with HP coffees is a lack of quality control.

“For instance, some farmers will harvest their coffee, but they won’t depulp it on the same day,” she says. “This has a negative effect on quality because the cherries will start to ferment on the side, which results in ‘foxy beans’ – a defect that creates unpleasant fermented flavours.”

Furthermore, while some producers do have access to the right facilities for depulping and fermentation, drying can still be an issue.

Overall, there is a lack of raised drying beds in Tanzanian coffee production, which means coffee often has to be dried on patios, which can sometimes impart earthy or silty flavours into the beans. In the long run, this can result in lower cup scores.

The role of co-operatives

Johnstone tells me that some practices that are popular among co-operatives in Tanzania can lead to lower quality coffee. 

“Unfortunately, even for farmers that follow best practices and deliver high-quality parchment to the co-operatives, all of the coffee is then grouped together under the same label,” he says. “This likely means that the overall price they receive for the lot is likely to be lower, even if some producers have contributed higher-quality, well-processed coffee.

“Most co-operatives also operate or own a share in some of the country’s CPUs, too,” he adds.

Despite this, Johnstone says farmers still receive higher prices when they sell their coffee through co-ops, as opposed to those who produce HP coffees.

At a CPU, staff members are responsible for carrying out processing methods and quality control, before specialist professionals inspect the final product. Some co-operatives in Tanzania work directly with private companies which can provide professionals to oversee and advise staff on how to carry out quality checks.

“They can visit each CPU on a daily basis to ensure that quality control procedures are followed, especially for washed coffees,” Lucia says.

Robusta quality standards in Tanzania

In many coffee-producing countries, green coffee is often graded according to size. To do this, screens are used, with each one using different-sized holes to separate the beans according to their size. 

Screen sizes are generally measured in increments of 1/64 inches. For instance, screen size 12 includes holes that have a diameter of 12/64 inches.

However, Johnstone says that in Tanzania, the same screen sizes are used for both robusta and arabica.

The largest screen size for robusta is known as screen 18, which is also referred to as “extra”. This size is considered the equivalent of grade AA – a high-quality grade of coffee used in countries like Kenya – and it generally receives a high point score on the Specialty Coffee Association scale.

The next lower screen size is known as screen 16 or “superior”. 

“‘Superior’ coffee has a good appearance, is free of any musty flavours and aromas, and has a minimum amount of defects,” Johnstone tells me. “It has a good cup quality, too.”

Any coffee below screen size 12 is considered as “triage” – these are very small beans mixed in with broken beans, low-quality coffee, and potential foreign objects (such as stones or small twigs).

What about standards for arabica?

Even though the same screen sizes are used to classify both arabica and robusta in Tanzania, quality control standards are usually stricter for the former.

Arabica parchment coffee is initially categorised into P1, P2, and P3 groups – depending on the quality. Each of these groups is then processed separately.

“At a dry mill, the coffee is hulled and graded depending on its bean shape, size, and density,” Lucia says.

Depending on the processing method used, Tanzanian coffee can also be categorised as either “hard arabica” (natural process) or “mild arabica” (washed process). The majority of arabica in the country is classified as “mild”.

“‘Hard’ arabica is harvested, dried, and milled,” Johnstone explains. “It is mostly produced in the Tarime region, mainly because the farmers there are more used to growing robusta – which usually undergoes natural processing.”

The official Tanzanian export grades for hard arabica are AAA, AA, A, B, PB (peaberry), C, E, F, AF, TT, UG, and TEX. These are all determined by both bean size and density – with AAA being the largest screen size and TEX being the smallest.

Typically, coffees from the Southern Highlands have a medium body and medium levels of acidity, as well as more citric, chocolate, floral, and fruit flavour notes. In particular, Tanzanian peaberry coffee is highly regarded for its high quality.

Coffee in Tanzania is then grouped into “quality baskets”, which include “grinders”, “FAQ”, and “AMEX” classifications. The AMEX category is mainly used for HP coffees, which are mostly produced in the Southern Highlands.

Most coffees from the northern regions are categorised as FAQ as they are more likely to be washed. These coffees are usually cleaner tasting and have more uniform quality than AMEX coffees.

Meanwhile, “mild” arabica is classified according to bean size and density, cup quality, number of defects, and appearance after roasting. These categories range from class 1 to class 17; the higher the screen size, the larger and higher quality the bean is – although this is not always the case as quality depends on a number of factors, including screen size. Lucia notes that most Tanzanian mild arabica is graded as Class 14 or higher, while semi-washed arabica is generally graded between 6 and 8.

“For instance, classes 1, 2, and 3 are all roughly the same size, are grey-green in colour, and have a moisture content between 9% and 12.5%,” Johnstone explains. “They usually have well-balanced acidity levels and body, and are free from any defects.”

Even within these classifications, there are further indicators of quality. Classes 1, 2, and 3 are considered “fine”, “fair”, and “fair/good”, while classes 4, 5, and 6 are labelled as FAQ+, FAQ, and FAQ-, respectively. The remaining classifications are “poor/fair”, “poor”, “very poor”, and “unclean”. 

Although Tanzania’s current classification systems can certainly help to identify and differentiate coffees based on quality, Lucia hopes that further changes will be made in the future.

“Hopefully the Tanzanian Coffee Board can revise the systems to reflect the higher-quality coffees that Tanzanian farmers are growing,” she says. “These systems have been around since 2001, and since then, farmers have vastly improved the quality of coffee in Tanzania.”

In doing so, we may well see more opportunities for the country’s coffee farmers to improve their income.

Enjoyed this? Then read our article exploring coffee & direct trade in East Africa.

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Naturally, large-scale agricultural production can sometimes be at odds with environmental conservation and protection efforts – often because of links to deforestation and poor farm management, for instance.

However, as the demand for sustainably-grown coffee continues to rise, more and more efforts are being made by industry stakeholders to support farmers to reduce the environmental impact of coffee production.

What’s more, as the impact of climate change continues to threaten the future of the coffee sector, these sustainable efforts are now more important than ever.

To find out how we can acknowledge and begin to resolve environmental issues in coffee production, I spoke with three industry experts. Read on for more of their insight.

You may also like our article environmentally sustainable coffee production & profitability.

Understanding the environmental issues associated with coffee production

First and foremost, it should be noted that the vast majority of environmental issues in coffee production are a result of large-scale farming. 

Although it’s estimated that smallholder farmers produce up to 80% of the world’s coffee supply, most of them only grow coffee on 30ha or less – meaning their carbon footprints are minimal compared to larger coffee farms and multinational coffee companies.

Ultimately, this means accounting for environmental issues is largely the responsibility of these companies – not producers.

However, while there is a growing number of sustainable programmes being implemented on coffee farms, that doesn’t mean there aren’t some environmental issues stemming from coffee production.

Steffen Sauer is the founder of Ulinzi Africa Foundation, a non-profit that works with park rangers in East Africa to protect local wildlife.

“Conservation and environmental protection are problems in the coffee industry, but they are not unique to this sector,” he explains. “These are issues in all major, large-scale agricultural industries because of economies of scale.”

A 2021 study from University College London found that after the export of coffee, production was responsible for the second-highest total volume of carbon emissions across the supply chain. This is because in many cases the transport of coffee is reliant on fossil fuels to some extent, as coffee is generally shipped to consuming countries on large freight vessels.

However, beyond emissions, we also have to consider other environmental issues. For instance, the incorrect use of chemicals and agricultural inputs on larger farms can be an environmental concern. If applied incorrectly, chemicals such as fertilisers and pesticides can cause serious damage to the environment and surrounding wildlife. 

Overuse of these chemicals on a large scale can lead to a decline in soil health, as well as groundwater contamination and eutrophication. This is when bodies of water become overly saturated with nutrients and minerals, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. Ultimately, this can kill animals, insects, fish, and birds.

Deforestation is also another problem for large-scale agriculture, as it leads to a significant loss of habitat for local wildlife and can accelerate the desertification of arable land.

“Conservation is not just about protecting animals, but also their habitats,” Steffen adds. “There are a lot of synergies between conservation and coffee; the two are interlinked.”

Around the world – including in major coffee-growing regions – an estimated average of 13 million hectares of forest are lost per year. Not only does this destroy habitats for animals, insects, and birds, it also means there are fewer trees to sequester carbon.

This is especially concerning, as experts are already predicting that if carbon emissions remain as they are now, by 2050 as much as half of all global arabica-growing land could be unsuitable. 

What about coffee processing?

Processing is a key part of preparing coffee for export, as well as preserving quality. The two main methods are washed and natural processing.

Ritesh Doshi is the CEO of Spring Valley Coffee in Kenya. He explains the differences between the two in terms of environmental issues.

“Washed coffee can be easier to sell in my experience, but wet processing uses [significantly more water than natural processing],” he says. “Natural processing, however, results in almost no wastewater.”

Again, it’s important to note that in comparison with large-scale agriculture, smallholder farmers are responsible for significantly lower amount of harmful byproducts and a tiny volume of wastewater, if any. 

Natural processing is arguably the most environmentally-friendly processing technique, as it is less energy-intensive and requires little to no water. This is because the cherries are harvested and then left to dry fully intact on patios or raised beds.  

Washed coffee, meanwhile, needs a significant volume of water – which can make it a less sustainable processing method. The cherries are submerged in water tanks before they are depulped (or wet milled), which involves removing the seeds from the skin and fruit of the cherry.

Although washed processing can result in a cleaner-tasting coffee, it also produces larger volumes of wastewater than natural processing. However, even if a smallholder producer is exclusively carrying out washed processing, they alone are unlikely to cause a significant amount of harm to the environment.

Jesse Winters is the founder of Conservation Coffee, which sources shade-grown coffee from organic farms.

“[If the wastewater is not managed correctly], it can pollute rivers, streams, and lakes which increases the bioload,” he tells me. “This can be devastating to marine [and freshwater] wildlife.”

A high bioload can lead to eutrophication, as mentioned earlier, which in turn causes phytoplankton like algae to grow. This prevents oxygen and sunlight from reaching below the surface of the water – potentially killing fish and other wildlife.

Pulp is another byproduct of coffee processing to consider, no matter which method is used. Much like wastewater, if not discarded improperly, pulp can pollute land and water systems, too.

What about the rest of the supply chain?

While coffee farmers can be encouraged to use more organic fertilisers or manage waste in a more sustainable way, environmental efforts in the coffee industry need to go far beyond this.

It goes without saying that all supply chain actors need to take on more responsibility for reducing the environmental impact of the coffee industry.

Firstly, we need to recognise that beyond production and export, there are other areas of the supply chain which are responsible for environmental issues.

Roasting can produce greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. While some modern roasters now include built-in air recycling systems, older models typically emit these gases into the atmosphere.

Furthermore, the volume of waste produced by coffee shops (especially single-use cups) is a major concern for many people. It can be anywhere from difficult to impossible to recycle single-use coffee cups, and many are sent to landfill as a result. In these anaerobic conditions, it can take hundreds of years for these cups to break down.

Steffen believes that some of the responsibility to reduce environmental impact lies with consumers.

“Consumers need to demand higher quality, but they also need to be willing to pay for it,” he tells me. “They should pay for the quality they want to have, and they should purchase coffee that does not cause any damage to the environment.

“Individual decisions play a big role,” he adds. “For example, consumers can put pressure on bigger companies to be more mindful of the environment.”

In recent years, many larger coffee companies have pledged to offset their emissions and reduce their environmental impact, including Starbucks and Nespresso. However, it’s evident that more work needs to be done – especially when these companies still make a significant contribution to the amount of waste produced.

Ritesh agrees, saying: “We need people in the bigger companies adding more value – farmers also need to add pressure to these companies.”

Other key industry stakeholders also need to play a part, as legislation and policies can help to bolster conservation efforts in coffee production. For instance, the European Union recently enforced new mandatory due diligence rules on exporters and traders so they will gradually stop sourcing coffee which is linked to deforestation at origin.

“Government legislation can help, but change ultimately needs to be led by forward-thinking businesses and consumers,” Ritesh says.

Considering the solutions

In order to implement more environmental protection efforts at origin, we must acknowledge that actors all across the supply chain have a responsibility to support sustainability initiatives in coffee-producing countries.

Some farmers are shifting towards more environmentally-friendly agricultural practices, such as syntropic farming and agroforestry.

Growing coffee under shade trees, for instance, is proven to produce higher-quality coffee across the board, while also promoting biodiversity. This can also provide farmers with natural pest control methods, as birds and small animals can eat insects which interfere with coffee plants.

As well as this, increasing the number of shade-grown coffee plants encourages less deforestation, sequesters more carbon dioxide, and generally requires fewer chemical inputs, such as fertilisers.

Ritesh tells me that Spring Valley partners with a conservation programme. He says for every bag of coffee sold, 50% of gross profit is donated to the programme.

“We work with Seedballs Kenya,” he explains. “Using this money, we plant five indigenous tree seedlings in an area that we source from.”

As for processing methods, proper management techniques can help to recycle or reuse wastewater and discarded pulp. When treated correctly, wastewater can be used to irrigate coffee plants or can be added back into natural water sources. Similarly, when managed properly, coffee pulp can be repurposed as biofuel or organic fertiliser.

However, for many producers (mostly smallholder farmers) these changes may require a significant financial investment, and may not immediately pay dividends. For instance, while organic farming can be more sustainable, it may also result in smaller yields, meaning producers might not receive as much income.

Larger coffee companies also have a major role to play in reducing environmental impact. Among some of these, we’re seeing concepts like carbon offsetting and insetting become more prominent across coffee production. 

Insetting is the process of organisations reducing net carbon emissions within their own supply chains, while offsetting is when they acquire carbon credits to balance their emissions, often looking beyond their suppliers or even to other sectors to do so.

Furthermore, while environmental sustainability at farm level is certainly necessary, it’s important to highlight the role of certifications, too.

Certification schemes are commonplace in the coffee industry, especially those which require coffee businesses to implement more sustainable practices. For instance, organic certifications have strict regulations for farmers – mainly regarding the absence of chemical inputs.

However, Jesse emphasises that consumers need to pay attention to what certifications actually mean.

“Consumers should purchase coffee from companies who [have passed many checks to receive their certifications],” he says.

Many smallholder producers may already be carrying out organic practices on their coffee farms. However, because obtaining certifications can be costly, some farmers may be unable to apply – meaning they are retaining less value.

Ultimately, Ritesh believes that the push for environmental conservation in coffee production comes down to whether customers are willing to pay more.

“To use compostable bags, or produce shade-grown coffee, or implement organic farming practices costs more money – the end customer needs to be willing to pay for it,” he concludes.

Although sustainable changes have been made in recent years, it’s clear that more legislation, investment, and awareness is required to resolve some of the environmental issues related to coffee production. We also can’t ignore the financial implications of making these changes at farm level – particularly where smallholder farmers are concerned.

Ultimately, there are signs that things will keep improving, but with mounting pressure from the threat of climate change, one thing is arguably clear: the need for more substantive change is certainly increasing. 

Enjoyed this? Then try our article on whether coffee quality & environmental sustainability go hand in hand.

Photo credits: Mauhobaah Butt

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