I am currently reading Paul Theroux and he writes that writers talk to themselves. As no one is following this blog yet I expect that I am now talking to myself. Whatever, in the hope that sooner or later someone will stumble on this blog, I will continue!
One of our groups, IriaIni, was placed third in the Kenya Taste of Harvest competition. This is a great achievement as there were entries from 35 groups, all from the better growing areas and with decent coffee. Actually this group had two entries, one each from two different wet mills. One was placed third, and the other 35th! The growing conditions are identical and the factories are within sight of each other; just varying degrees of management. It does make a difference. The upshot of this is that this coffee will be judged again in Kigali next week, along with the placed coffee from all the other producing countries in East, Central and Southern Africa. This will be interesting as Kenyan coffee really is 'The' east African coffee.
One other big news item in the Kenyan coffee scene is the suspension of the marketing liscence of the KPCU, the Kenya Plantation Cooperative Union. Until two years ago this was the only organisation that could dry mill and market smallholder coffee in Kenya. The legislation changed two years ago, but KPCU has continued to operate with reduced volumes, while other millers and marketing agents have started handling smallholder coffee. KPCU will continue to mill coffee, at least for the time being. This is a significant development as this is a politically important group of people. Insolvency though is insolvency, and the way forward looks very difficult for KPCU.
Next week we will be in Kigali for the EAFCA annual jamboree, and will be able to network and also showcase this coffee along with the best the region can produce, to buyers from all over the world.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Specialty Coffee at Ruiru Fair!
The Ruiru Coffee fair is to be held tomorrow. This is really just a trade fair for equipment and so on, mostly to do with producing coffee. However as I have never been to one before I may have it wrong. Tomorrow also will be the judging of the Kenyan entries in the 'Taste Of the Harvest" competition. I believe 35 coffees have been entered and the first five will be named and sent through to the EAFCA competition in Kigal in two weeks. Our groups comprise three of these so it will be a stiff test.
Yesterday Nairobi had its biggest entertainment for some time, in the form of a huge fire in a Downtown Supermarket. This drew crowds from all round and had three different fire departments trying to put it out. Every hose had a chain of people holding it shoulder to shoulder. The crowds were shouting directions at the firefighters. As I watched on a silent TV it was as if a thousand people had rehearsed the moves, urging on or pulling back. On one memorable clip, a firefighter was walking along in front of the camera when someone behind turned on a hose which snaked across the screen, knocking the firefighter over.
Rain ten days ago has caused the local coffee to flower. This really is a sight, snowy white against the dark rich green of the leaves. The blossom also has a wonderful aroma which is all pervading at the moment.
Seeing as no one is following this blog yet I will not get too carried away!
Yesterday Nairobi had its biggest entertainment for some time, in the form of a huge fire in a Downtown Supermarket. This drew crowds from all round and had three different fire departments trying to put it out. Every hose had a chain of people holding it shoulder to shoulder. The crowds were shouting directions at the firefighters. As I watched on a silent TV it was as if a thousand people had rehearsed the moves, urging on or pulling back. On one memorable clip, a firefighter was walking along in front of the camera when someone behind turned on a hose which snaked across the screen, knocking the firefighter over.
Rain ten days ago has caused the local coffee to flower. This really is a sight, snowy white against the dark rich green of the leaves. The blossom also has a wonderful aroma which is all pervading at the moment.
Seeing as no one is following this blog yet I will not get too carried away!
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Addis and back
Well since I last logged on I visited Addis Ababa for some training and meeting. Ethiopia may be the home of coffee but there is a reluctance to share it! We visited the Commodity Exchange, where coffee is traded within fixed predetermined qualities and prices. This is a new institution and at the moment prevents any traceability of coffee or premium prices to be paid for certification. Hopefully this is a temporary situation, caused by a rush of blood to the head.
Travelling out for a meal in Addis is another of life's special experiences. As there were six of us we took two taxis. These are old seventies era Ladas, and look as if they have been rolled along the streets whenever they were short of tyres. In our vehicle the clutch screamed whenever gears were changed and the brakes felt a bit suspect. We set off in what we thought was the direction of the chosen restaurant, only for the driver to stop and run accross the road where he asked directions from another driver. On returning it was apparent we had been going in the wrong direction as we immediately did a 'U' turn in the middle of a double highway! We soon got off the main road and headed up darker streets where the small stalls looked as if they were lit for the occassion. By the time we alighted we were pretty shaken and took most of the first five minutes to recover from the experience.
Back in Nairobi we got the news that another farmers group had decided to partner with us. They are a big group with four wet mills and over 2000 members. They are situated on the eastern side of Mt. Kenya, in Meru District. The problem faced by these farmers is that they have too much capacity and cost and really ought to consolidate by closeing at least two of the wet mills. As one in particular has been paying low prices for cherry, there are fewer farmers delivering to that mill every season.
Tomorrow we are all going to a seminar entitled "Cost Cutting and Value Adding" to be held under the auspices of the East African Fine Coffee Association. There is no difference in Value Adding and Cost Adding, other than one's position. Kenya coffee is losing market share for a number of reasons, inconsistent quality, lower volumes and very high prices. All of these serve to narrow the market opportunities, and this is a trend we would like to help stop.
As a finale, there has been a recent medical paper published showing that the consumption of coffee is negatively correlated to developing dementia. So dont forget to have a cup or two!
Travelling out for a meal in Addis is another of life's special experiences. As there were six of us we took two taxis. These are old seventies era Ladas, and look as if they have been rolled along the streets whenever they were short of tyres. In our vehicle the clutch screamed whenever gears were changed and the brakes felt a bit suspect. We set off in what we thought was the direction of the chosen restaurant, only for the driver to stop and run accross the road where he asked directions from another driver. On returning it was apparent we had been going in the wrong direction as we immediately did a 'U' turn in the middle of a double highway! We soon got off the main road and headed up darker streets where the small stalls looked as if they were lit for the occassion. By the time we alighted we were pretty shaken and took most of the first five minutes to recover from the experience.
Back in Nairobi we got the news that another farmers group had decided to partner with us. They are a big group with four wet mills and over 2000 members. They are situated on the eastern side of Mt. Kenya, in Meru District. The problem faced by these farmers is that they have too much capacity and cost and really ought to consolidate by closeing at least two of the wet mills. As one in particular has been paying low prices for cherry, there are fewer farmers delivering to that mill every season.
Tomorrow we are all going to a seminar entitled "Cost Cutting and Value Adding" to be held under the auspices of the East African Fine Coffee Association. There is no difference in Value Adding and Cost Adding, other than one's position. Kenya coffee is losing market share for a number of reasons, inconsistent quality, lower volumes and very high prices. All of these serve to narrow the market opportunities, and this is a trend we would like to help stop.
As a finale, there has been a recent medical paper published showing that the consumption of coffee is negatively correlated to developing dementia. So dont forget to have a cup or two!
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
A cool cloudy day in Nairobi. Yesterday we sent three entries from our groups to the East African Fine Coffee Association 'Cup of Excellence' competition. These coffees will be tasted by a panel of qualified assessors, or cuppers, who will check on the quality. The coffees deemed good enough will then go forward to the final stages of the competition in Kigali, Rwanda, next month. For our groups recognition at this level will allow them to negotiate hard for better prices for their coffee.
For our project this competition will be a measure of how successful our intervention has been in improving the coffee during the wet processing. In the past these three groups had good, but not outstanding coffee. They farm at high altitude, 1700 m above sea level or higher, and have excellent soils and rainfall and should be able to produce really good coffee.
This morning I also received the results of this week's auction at the Nairobi Coffee Exchange. Prices are firm, and very good for better qualities, despite the 'crunch' in the major consuming countries. So keep drinking good coffe out there!
This evening I will be travelling to Ethiopia for meetings in Addis Ababa. Ethiopia is the home of arabica cofee and the coffee culture is really amazing. Ethiopians drink freshly roasted coffee every time they have a cup! This can be several times a day, even for poor villagers. It is a few years since I was in Ethiopia so it will be very interesting to see what has happened. As in most African countries there is a building boom and I expect the skyline to look somewaht different.
For our project this competition will be a measure of how successful our intervention has been in improving the coffee during the wet processing. In the past these three groups had good, but not outstanding coffee. They farm at high altitude, 1700 m above sea level or higher, and have excellent soils and rainfall and should be able to produce really good coffee.
This morning I also received the results of this week's auction at the Nairobi Coffee Exchange. Prices are firm, and very good for better qualities, despite the 'crunch' in the major consuming countries. So keep drinking good coffe out there!
This evening I will be travelling to Ethiopia for meetings in Addis Ababa. Ethiopia is the home of arabica cofee and the coffee culture is really amazing. Ethiopians drink freshly roasted coffee every time they have a cup! This can be several times a day, even for poor villagers. It is a few years since I was in Ethiopia so it will be very interesting to see what has happened. As in most African countries there is a building boom and I expect the skyline to look somewaht different.
Kikombe the Cup
Kikombe is a cup in kiswahili - and in the case of this blog of mine it is a coffee cup. i am working on a specialty coffee project in Kenya, which aims to reduce poverty among small coffee farmers by helping them enter the specialty coffee market. This is a great project and really fun to work in. One of the perks is to taste and drink some really great coffee.
Perhaps if there is anyone out there interested in following a rural development project, which has direct connections with the gourmet coffee drinkers over the ocean you may like to keep a track of this blog and get a feel for how a really good cup of coffee is really made! There is a lot of work involved long before the coffee reaches any boiling water! There are also great people trying to make a living out of growing this crop. They have children to feed and educate, and they also have to think about their old age.
This is their story too.
Perhaps if there is anyone out there interested in following a rural development project, which has direct connections with the gourmet coffee drinkers over the ocean you may like to keep a track of this blog and get a feel for how a really good cup of coffee is really made! There is a lot of work involved long before the coffee reaches any boiling water! There are also great people trying to make a living out of growing this crop. They have children to feed and educate, and they also have to think about their old age.
This is their story too.
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