{ "id": "kenya", "url": "https://coffearium.org/entries/kenya/", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "title": "Kenya", "summary": "A small but closely watched producer of washed arabica, grown by cooperative smallholders and estates on the volcanic highlands around Mount Kenya and the Aberdares, graded by bean size and sold mainly at the Nairobi Coffee Exchange.", "domain": "origin", "kind": "Region", "stage": "farm", "topics": [ "history" ], "topicSections": {}, "lang": "en", "status": "verified", "reviewer": "Coffearium verification pass", "lastVerified": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "literatureSearched": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "updated": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "added": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "brief": [ "Kenya produced 850,000 bags of 60 kg in 2025/26, all arabica, by the count of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA); USDA forecasts 950,000 bags for 2026/27.1", "In the Coffee Directorate’s county table for 2015/16, Kiambu, Nyeri, Kirinyaga and Murang’a grew 70% of the crop (our calculation).9", "About 80% of Kenyan coffee is sold through producer cooperatives, and the Nairobi Coffee Exchange handled over 95% of sales, according to a 2026 USDA report.5", "The East African standard EAS 130 grades green coffee by size and density as E, AA, AB, PB, C, TT and T; the ICO lists the same grades for Kenya.19,10", "The Coffee Act, 2026 received assent on 13 March 2026; it re-established the Coffee Board of Kenya and created a Coffee Research and Training Institute.11" ], "quickFacts": [ { "label": "Production (USDA)", "value": "850,000 60-kg bags (2025/26); 950,000 forecast (2026/27)" }, { "label": "Production (FAO)", "value": "49,500 t green coffee (2024)" }, { "label": "Share of world output", "value": "0.48% (USDA, 2025/26) · 0.44% (FAO, 2024), our calculation" }, { "label": "Species", "value": "Arabica only in USDA’s tables; over 99% arabica (ICO, 2019)" }, { "label": "Area", "value": "114,401 ha (Coffee Directorate, 2015/16); 105,000 ha harvested (USDA post, 2025/26)" }, { "label": "Main counties", "value": "Kiambu, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang’a – 70% of output (2015/16, our calculation)" }, { "label": "Recommended altitude (KALRO)", "value": "1,400–2,000 m east of the Rift Valley; 1,500–1,900 m west (KALRO recommendation, 2017); coffee grown at 1,400–2,200 m (ICO, 2019)" }, { "label": "Harvest", "value": "Two crops; months differ by source (see Contested)" }, { "label": "Producers", "value": "700,000–800,000 smallholders in about 500 cooperative societies; about 3,000 estates (ICO, 2019)" }, { "label": "Sales channel", "value": "Nairobi Coffee Exchange, over 95% of sales (USDA, 2026)" } ], "aka": [ "Kenyan coffee" ], "linkTerms": [ "Kenyan coffee", "Kenya coffee", "Mount Kenya" ], "related": [ "coffee-production-by-country", "the-coffee-belt", "coffea-arabica", "arabica-varieties", "coffee-berry-disease", "coffee-leaf-rust", "f1-hybrids", "harvest-calendars", "flowering-and-pollination", "washed-process", "fermentation", "green-coffee-grading", "peaberries-and-bean-shapes", "auctions-and-competitions", "the-coffee-value-chain", "differentials", "living-income", "soils-for-coffee", "coffee-yields", "eudr" ], "contested": [ "Size of the crop: USDA gives 950,000 bags for marketing year 2024/25 (October–September), which is 57,000 t (our calculation)1; FAO gives 49,500 t for calendar year 20243; the national statistics office counts 44.9 thousand t of coffee sold to marketing boards in 2024.8 The three measure different things over different periods.", "Harvest months: the ICO country profile gives a first crop from April to June and a second from October to December10; USDA (2017) calls September–December the early or “fly” crop and March–July the main crop7; FAO (2000) gives a main harvest in October–December and a secondary one in June and August.18", "First planting: the ICO places the first coffee at Bura in the Taita Hills in 189310; World Coffee Research dates a Spiritan mission at Bura to 1893 and says Réunion seed was planted at each mission, without calling Bura the first25; a 2022 historical study, citing a 1969 work, states that missionaries first grew coffee at Kibwezi in 1893.29 The ICO describes coffee at Kibwezi as later and irrigated.10", "Batian and leaf rust: resistant according to a 2012 study and the ICO profile26,10; intermediate resistance in the World Coffee Research catalogue rating, and “tolerance” in its description.24", "Direct sales in 2015/16: 6,492 t and USD 39.3 million in the Coffee Directorate’s 2017 table9; 7,544 t and USD 41.0 million in the ICO profile, which the same directorate prepared.10 Both give 7,183 t for 2014/15.9,10", "Number of smallholders: the same ICO profile gives over 700,000 smallholder growers in its summary and Table 5, and 800,000 in its text and Table 1.10" ], "corrections": [ { "date": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "change": "The 1968 date and the loss of half the crop were removed; the breeding of Ruiru 11 is now dated to outbreaks of CBD and leaf rust in the late 1960s and a programme begun in the 1970s.", "reason": "The 2014 conference paper gives \"late 1960s\" and 1971 but neither 1968 nor 50%; WCR's history narrative is Tier B, so the numbers rest on one Tier B source." }, { "date": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "change": "Batian's leaf rust reaction now gives both views (resistant in Gichuru et al. 2012 and the ICO; intermediate resistance in the WCR rating) and is listed under Contested.", "reason": "The WCR catalogue rates Batian \"Intermediate resistance\" to leaf rust; Gichuru et al. 2012 and the ICO profile call it resistant." }, { "date": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "change": "Direct sales for 2015/16 now give both the Coffee Directorate table (6,492 t) and the ICO profile (7,544 t), with both shares of the crop.", "reason": "Two Coffee Directorate publications give different values for the same year." }, { "date": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "change": "The Nairobi Coffee Exchange is dated to 1935 (USDA 2025, 2026; ICO first auction September 1935) instead of the early 1930s; the 95% share is given without a crop year.", "reason": "USDA's 2025 and 2026 reports and the ICO profile give 1935; the 2026 report gives no year for the share." }, { "date": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z", "change": "Corrected the FAO quote for the Kenya harvest (s18) and the K7 quote (s22); EAS 130 described as an East African standard; licensing under section 25 of the Coffee Act listed in full; counts without a data year marked; climate projections dated to the 2050s; county statements limited to the 15 largest counties; parchment grades from the ICO added.", "reason": "Independent verification of 2 November 2026 (docs/verification/kenya-verify.md)." } ], "sources": [ { "id": "s1", "title": "Coffee: World Markets and Trade (July 2026)", "authors": "USDA Foreign Agricultural Service", "year": 2026, "publisher": "United States Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service", "url": "https://apps.fas.usda.gov/psdonline/circulars/2026/07/coffee.pdf", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Kenya rows in the Coffee Summary tables Arabica Production and Production (thousand 60-kg bags, marketing years 2021/22–2026/27); Kenya has no separate row in the export and consumption tables. Kenya’s marketing year (October–September) from the table Marketing Years for Producing Countries. Edition of July 2026. Shares are our calculation.", "quote": "World production is unchanged from the December 2025 estimate of 178.8 million bags.", "quotes": [], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s2", "title": "Coffee bean production (FAOSTAT, Crops and livestock products, item Coffee, green)", "authors": "Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO); processed by Our World in Data", "year": 2026, "publisher": "FAO via Our World in Data", "url": "https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/coffee-bean-production", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "FAO statistics are Tier A; read through Our World in Data, which republishes the FAOSTAT series in tonnes. Values for Kenya, calendar years 1961–2024, read on 2 Nov 2026 from the chart’s filtered CSV download; the 2024 value (49,500 t) matches the site’s FAOSTAT extract.", "quotes": [], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s3", "title": "FAOSTAT: Crops and livestock products (item “Coffee, green”, element “Production”, 2024)", "authors": "Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations", "year": 2026, "publisher": "FAO, licence CC BY 4.0", "url": "https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QCL", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Values and flags from the FAOSTAT extract of 11 Oct 2026 used by the site’s world coffee map, kept in tools/figures/data/the-coffee-belt-production-faostat-2024.json (78 countries and territories; Kenya 49,500 t, flag A). Rank, sum and share are our calculation.", "quotes": [], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s4", "title": "Coffee bean yields; Coffee bean production (FAOSTAT, Crops and livestock products, item Coffee, green)", "authors": "Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO); processed by Our World in Data", "year": 2026, "publisher": "FAO via Our World in Data", "url": "https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/coffee-yields", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "FAO statistics are Tier A; read through Our World in Data. Kenya, 1961–2024, read on 2 Nov 2026 from the chart’s filtered CSV download (2024: 0.4357 t/ha, given here as 436 kg/ha).", "quotes": [], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s5", "title": "Kenya: Coffee Annual (KE2026-0011)", "authors": "Gitonga, K. (USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Nairobi)", "year": 2026, "publisher": "USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, GAIN report", "url": "https://apps.fas.usda.gov/newgainapi/api/Report/DownloadReportByFileName?fileName=Coffee+Annual_Nairobi_Kenya_KE2026-0011.pdf", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Government report dated 18 May 2026 (post estimates and forecasts, not official USDA figures). Area, exports, consumption and stocks from the post columns of its PSD table; export destinations from its Table 3 (MY 2024/25).", "quote": "Roughly 80 percent of Kenya coffee is sold through producer co-operatives", "quotes": [ { "text": "with the remainder managed by corporate and individual estates.", "for": "estates" }, { "text": "facilitates over 95 percent of coffee sales", "for": "Nairobi Coffee Exchange share" }, { "text": "a spot market founded in 1935", "for": "Nairobi Coffee Exchange founded" }, { "text": "the CMA has licensed 16 coffee brokers for the exchange", "for": "brokers" }, { "text": "In March 2026, Kenya enacted the Coffee Act", "for": "Coffee Act" }, { "text": "shifts regulatory oversight to a re-established Coffee Board of Kenya", "for": "Coffee Board" }, { "text": "the Direct Settlement System – a digital payment platform", "for": "Direct Settlement System" }, { "text": "licensing coffee millers has been moved from the Agriculture and Food Authority to the county governments", "for": "miller licensing" }, { "text": "establishment of an independent Coffee Research and Training Institute", "for": "research institute" }, { "text": "to climb to 950,000 bags in the MY 2026/27", "for": "production forecast" }, { "text": "the harvested area will increase marginally to 106,000 hectares", "for": "area harvested" }, { "text": "with volumes remaining steady at 62,000 bags", "for": "domestic consumption" }, { "text": "the average coffee price at the NCE fell to about $268.77 per 50kg bag", "for": "auction price, April 2026" }, { "text": "This initiative is being funneled through the New Kenya Planters Co-operative Union", "for": "planting programme" }, { "text": "spans the Central, Eastern, and Rift Valley regions.", "for": "regions of the planting programme" }, { "text": "the Coffee Research Institute facing a massive backlog", "for": "seedling backlog" }, { "text": "underwent systematic uprooting of coffee farms to make way for residential housing", "for": "loss of farms to housing" }, { "text": "securing a 17.2 percent market share", "for": "United States share of exports" }, { "text": "The European Union remains the primary destination for these exports", "for": "EU as main destination" }, { "text": "larger export firms must now meet these requirements by December 30, 2026", "for": "EUDR deadline" }, { "text": "steadily increases to peak between April and July", "for": "export peak" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s6", "title": "Kenya: Coffee Annual (KE2025-0011)", "authors": "Gitonga, K. (USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Nairobi)", "year": 2025, "publisher": "USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, GAIN report", "url": "https://apps.fas.usda.gov/newgainapi/api/Report/DownloadReportByFileName?fileName=Coffee+Annual_Nairobi_Kenya_KE2025-0011.pdf", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Government report dated 15 May 2025 (post estimates). Used for the fall in area planted from 2020 to 2024 and the status of the Coffee Bill in May 2025.", "quote": "A Coffee Bill, to codify these changes in law is still pending in Kenya's parliament.", "quotes": [ { "text": "from 112,000 to 105,000 hectares", "for": "area planted 2020–2024" }, { "text": "peri-urban areas of Nairobi, Thika, Kiambu, and Nyeri", "for": "conversion to housing" }, { "text": "handles over 90 percent of coffee sales", "for": "Nairobi Coffee Exchange share, 2025" }, { "text": "has been in existence since 1935", "for": "Nairobi Coffee Exchange founded" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s7", "title": "Kenya: Coffee Annual (2017)", "authors": "Gitonga, K.; Sage-EL, K. (USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Nairobi)", "year": 2017, "publisher": "USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, GAIN report", "url": "https://apps.fas.usda.gov/newgainapi/api/report/downloadreportbyfilename?filename=Coffee+Annual_Nairobi_Kenya_5-15-2017.pdf", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Government report dated 15 May 2017; describes the marketing system as of 2017.", "quote": "a spot market that has been in existence since early 1930s", "quotes": [ { "text": "The “fly” or early crop that is harvested between September and December, and the “main” or late crop is harvested between March and July.", "for": "harvest" }, { "text": "communally/cooperative owned mills that aggregate coffee from smallscale farmers", "for": "cooperative mills" }, { "text": "highly regarded for blending and specialty markets", "for": "reputation" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s8", "title": "2026 Facts and Figures", "authors": "Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS)", "year": 2026, "publisher": "Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, Nairobi", "url": "https://www.knbs.or.ke/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2026-Facts-and-Figures.pdf", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "National statistics office. Table 33 (Agriculture, 2021–2025), row Coffee under “Sale of Selected Crops to Marketing Boards”, thousand tonnes; Table 24 (Value of Principal Domestic Exports), row “Coffee, unroasted”, KSh million. The 2025 columns carry an asterisk in the source, marking provisional figures.", "quote": "Sale of Selected Crops to Marketing Boards", "quotes": [ { "text": "Value of Principal Domestic Exports", "for": "export value" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s9", "title": "AFA data validation and report writing: industrial crops data 2015/16 (Table 2: Area under Coffee and Production)", "authors": "Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA), Coffee Directorate", "year": 2017, "publisher": "Ministry of Agriculture, Kenya (statistics.kilimo.go.ke)", "url": "https://statistics.kilimo.go.ke/files/bookpage/AFA_Industrial_crops_DATA_2015-16_NBaiKFY.docx", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Government statistics (workshop of 13–18 March 2017, Nakuru). Table 2 gives production (MT) for 2015/16 and 2014/15 and area (ha) by estates and cooperatives for 31 counties; table source line ‘AFA - Coffee Directorate’. The county rows add up to 46,122 t and 114,396 ha against printed totals of 46,121 t and 114,401 ha (West Pokot’s area total omits its 5 ha of estates). The type of coffee in ‘Production (MT)’ is not stated. Table 3 gives direct sales.", "quote": "Similarly, the approximated area under coffee increased marginally by 640 hectares from 113,761 hectares recorded in 2015", "quotes": [ { "text": "Source: AFA - Coffee Directorate", "for": "data source" }, { "text": "Direct sales involve sale of high/premium grades (AA.AB.E.PB) while Auction prices are reflective of all grades", "for": "direct sales" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s10", "title": "Country Coffee Profile: Kenya (ICC-124-7)", "authors": "International Coffee Organization", "year": 2019, "publisher": "International Coffee Organization", "url": "https://www.ico.org/documents/cy2018-19/icc-124-7e-profile-kenya.pdf", "tier": "A/B", "tierNote": "Dated 14 March 2019. A for its statistics (Table 1 holdings, Table 2 production by estates and cooperatives 2012/13–2017/18, Table 5 counts of stakeholders, area, share wet processed); B for history and descriptions. In Table 2 the printed totals for 2013/14, 2015/16, 2016/17 and 2017/18 differ from the sum of estates and cooperatives by 1–96 t; the area components (88,278 + 26,222 ha) add to 114,500 ha, not the 115,570 ha stated; no year is given for the area. The profile was prepared by the AFA Coffee Directorate, so it is not independent of source 9. Its Table 5 counts carry no year of data.", "quote": "Coffee was first planted in Kenya at Bura in the Taita Hills in 1893", "quotes": [ { "text": "and later grown under irrigation at Kibwezi, in 1900,", "for": "Kibwezi (date not used; one Tier B source)" }, { "text": "and at Kikuyu, near Nairobi, in 1904.", "for": "Kikuyu (date not used; one Tier B source)" }, { "text": "of coffee outside European-settled areas, particularly in Kisii and Meru.", "for": "African planting in the 1930s" }, { "text": "Coffee is grown by an estimated 800,000 smallholder farmers, clustered under 500 cooperative societies", "for": "smallholders" }, { "text": "over 700,000 smallholder growers", "for": "smallholders, summary" }, { "text": "a total of about 3,000 coffee estates, categorized as small, medium and large", "for": "estates" }, { "text": "Kenyan coffee is grown on an estimated total area of 115,570ha in 32 counties out of a total of 47 counties in the country.", "for": "area and counties" }, { "text": "Coffee-growing areas are located within the Western, Rift Valley, Central Kenya and Mt Kenya regions", "for": "regions" }, { "text": "Coffee is grown in the high potential areas between 1,400 and 2,200 metres above sea level", "for": "altitude" }, { "text": "the main rainy seasons being from March to May and from November to December.", "for": "rainy seasons" }, { "text": "Coffee is mainly grown under rain-fed conditions", "for": "rain-fed" }, { "text": "with the first crop from April to June and the second from October to December.", "for": "harvest" }, { "text": "Over 99% of Kenyan coffee is Arabica, whose main varieties are SL 28, SL 34, K7, Ruiru 11, Batian and Blue Mountain.", "for": "varieties" }, { "text": "Most Kenyan coffee (90%) is wet processed at washing stations owned by cooperative societies and estate farmers", "for": "wet processing" }, { "text": "The grades are: E, AA, AB, PB, C, T, TT and MH, ML; with grades E, AA, AB and PB being regarded as the premium grades.", "for": "grades" }, { "text": "Direct sales to buyers from importing countries have been authorized as a second window.", "for": "second window" }, { "text": "The trend of production of Kenyan coffee has oscillated between 40,000 to 50,000 Mt over the last six years.", "for": "production trend" }, { "text": "The first coffee auction was inaugurated in September 1935.", "for": "first auction" }, { "text": "the Kenya coffee auctions, as a mode of selling Kenyan coffee, were established in 1934", "for": "auctions established" }, { "text": "The improved varieties are resistant to Coffee Berry Disease and Leaf Rust Disease", "for": "Ruiru 11 and Batian" }, { "text": "graded into Parchment 1, 2, 3 and lights", "for": "parchment grades" }, { "text": "2015/16 7,543,758 41,048,102", "for": "direct sales 2015/16" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s11", "title": "The Coffee Act, 2026 (No. 8 of 2026)", "authors": "Republic of Kenya", "year": 2026, "publisher": "Kenya Gazette Supplement; text read on FAOLEX (FAO)", "url": "https://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/ken242992.pdf", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Act of Parliament; date of assent 13 March 2026, commencement 27 March 2026. Read as published on FAOLEX; the Kenya Law version was not consulted.", "quote": "This Act may be cited as the Coffee Act, 2026.", "quotes": [ { "text": "Date of Assent: 13th March, 2026", "for": "assent" }, { "text": "Date of Commencement: 27th March, 2026", "for": "commencement" }, { "text": "There is established the Coffee Board of Kenya.", "for": "section 4" }, { "text": "There is established an institute to be known as the Coffee Research and Training Institute.", "for": "section 39" }, { "text": "applied for, and obtained a licence from the respective county government", "for": "section 25, county licences" }, { "text": "the application of the Kenya Coffee Mark of Origin", "for": "section 11(1)(f)" }, { "text": "comply with the prescribed standard coffee grades", "for": "section 71(2)(f)" }, { "text": "the auction system under which clean coffee is offered for sale at a coffee exchange", "for": "definition of auction" }, { "text": "The Crops Act is amended—", "for": "section 107" }, { "text": "monetary consideration received at the direct settlement system in exchange for clean coffee", "for": "direct settlement system" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s12", "title": "The Capital Markets (Coffee Exchange) Regulations, 2020 (Legal Notice 40 of 2020)", "authors": "Republic of Kenya", "year": 2020, "publisher": "Kenya Gazette Vol. CXXII No. 58 (Kenya Law)", "url": "https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/act/ln/2020/40/eng@2022-12-31", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Government regulation; read in the consolidated version of 31 December 2022.", "quote": "The grower or the grower's agent shall set the reserve price for each lot in the sales catalogue", "quotes": [], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s13", "title": "Coffee Value Chain Research Annual Report 2022–2023", "authors": "Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), Coffee Research Institute", "year": 2023, "publisher": "Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO repository)", "url": "https://kalroerepository.kalro.org/handle/123456789/14128", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Annual report of the national coffee research institute (abstract read in the KALRO repository record).", "quote": "The Institute headquarters is located in Ruiru (Kiambu County), about 33 km from Nairobi", "quotes": [ { "text": "It has two centres in Kitale (Trans-Nzoia county) and Ruiru, and subcentres at Azania (Kiambu county),", "for": "centres" }, { "text": "Koru (Kericho County), Kisii (Kisii County), Namwela (Bungoma County) and Mariene (Meru County).", "for": "sub-centres" } ], "abstractOnly": true, "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s14", "title": "Coffee Field Establishment", "authors": "Odeny, D. A.; Minai, D. A.; Luusa, J. M.", "year": 2017, "publisher": "Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), extension brochure", "url": "https://kalroerepository.kalro.org/items/f8019c2d-4172-473c-9ab3-87ee9f5f5723/full", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Extension material of the national coffee research institute (its own technical guidance); read from the abstract in the KALRO repository record. The ranges are climate requirements for planting, not a survey of where coffee is grown.", "quote": "Climate Requirements. Altitude 1400- 2000 m above sea level East of the Rift valley", "quotes": [ { "text": "and 1500-1900 m above sea level West of Rift valley.", "for": "west of the Rift" }, { "text": "Average annual rainfall 1000 mm and 1145 mmEast and West of Rift, respectively.", "for": "rainfall" } ], "abstractOnly": true, "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s15", "title": "March–April–May (MAM) 2026 Seasonal Weather Forecast (KMD/FCST/01-2026/SO/01)", "authors": "Kenya Meteorological Department", "year": 2026, "publisher": "Kenya Meteorological Department, Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forestry", "url": "https://meteo.go.ke/documents/2537/March-April-May_MAM_2026_Seasonal_Weather_Forecast.pdf", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "National meteorological service, issued 6 February 2026.", "quote": "The March to May period is the main rainfall season over most parts of Kenya and much of equatorial Eastern Africa.", "quotes": [ { "text": "1.2 Review of the October-November-December (OND) 2025 \"Short-Rains\" Season", "for": "short rains" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s16", "title": "Floral Initiation and Flowering of Coffea arabica L. in Kenya", "authors": "Wormer, T. M.; Gituanja, J.", "year": 1970, "publisher": "Experimental Agriculture 6(2), 157–170", "url": "https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/experimental-agriculture/article/abs/floral-initiation-and-flowering-of-coffea-arabica-l-in-kenya/B415FAAFEB172080DA595526C1A85AA4", "doi": "10.1017/S0014479700000211", "tier": "A", "quote": "These flowerings are mainly initiated from approximately August to December and June to September, respectively.", "quotes": [ { "text": "In Kenya, coffee growing east of the Great Rift Valley has its main flowering either in February–March or in October–November.", "for": "flowering months" } ], "abstractOnly": true, "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s17", "title": "Post Harvest Handling and Processing of Coffee in African Countries, Annex 5: Coffee Post Harvest Handling and processing in Kenya", "authors": "Mutua, J.", "year": 2000, "publisher": "FAO", "url": "https://www.fao.org/4/X6939E/X6939e11.htm", "tier": "A", "quote": "This stage takes 1 to 4 days depending on the prevailing weather conditions, faster on warm days and slow on cold days.", "quotes": [ { "text": "Coffee harvesting in Kenya is done by selective picking of the ripe berries.", "for": "picking" }, { "text": "These farmers have formed co-operatives, which have put up pulping units referred to as Factories.", "for": "factories" }, { "text": "After pulping, the coffee is graded into three grades 1,2 and lights.", "for": "grading after pulping" }, { "text": "soaking of coffee parchment after fermentation for about 12 hours improves the coffee quality.", "for": "soaking" }, { "text": "Final washing is done in concrete channels by pushing the parchment.", "for": "washing" }, { "text": "the coffee is spread on wire mesh tables for several days (normally about 14 days).", "for": "drying" }, { "text": "Freshly pulped coffee has a moisture content (mc) of about 55%, which has to be reduced by drying to 11%.", "for": "moisture" }, { "text": "This storage is done for a maximum of 6 months.", "for": "storage" }, { "text": "Some big commercial estates use mechanical drying.", "for": "mechanical drying" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s18", "title": "Post Harvest Handling and Processing of Coffee in African Countries, Annex 4: Africa Coffee Producing Countries Profiles", "authors": "Mutua, J.", "year": 2000, "publisher": "FAO (AGSI)", "url": "https://www.fao.org/4/X6939E/X6939e10.htm", "tier": "A", "quote": "Main harvest: October to December Secondary: June and August", "quotes": [ { "text": "North and north-east of Nairobi", "for": "Kenya production regions" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s19", "title": "EAS 130:1999 Green coffee beans – Specification", "authors": "East African Community", "year": 1999, "publisher": "East African Community (copy hosted by Public.Resource.Org)", "url": "https://law.resource.org/pub/eac/ibr/eas.130.1999.pdf", "tier": "A", "quote": "When a coffee grade is specified, a minimum 95 % of the beans shall fall in that grade category.", "quotes": [ { "text": "Two beans joined together, it is a genetic defect.", "for": "grade E" }, { "text": "Smallest, consists of brokens and small C", "for": "grade T" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s20", "title": "SL28", "authors": "World Coffee Research", "publisher": "World Coffee Research, Arabica Coffee Varieties catalogue", "url": "https://varieties.worldcoffeeresearch.org/varieties/sl28", "tier": "A/B", "tierNote": "WCR catalogue data (breeder, lineage, selection year, disease ratings) are A; its history narrative is B.", "quote": "SL28 was selected in 1935 from a single tree in a population called Tanganyika Drought Resistant.", "quotes": [ { "text": "So, while tree planting densities typically are much lower in Africa, each tree is fruiting relatively more", "for": "planting density (not used for a number)" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s21", "title": "SL34", "authors": "World Coffee Research", "publisher": "World Coffee Research, Arabica Coffee Varieties catalogue", "url": "https://varieties.worldcoffeeresearch.org/varieties/sl34", "tier": "A/B", "tierNote": "WCR catalogue data (breeder, genetic group, disease ratings) are A; its history narrative is B.", "quote": "SL34 was selected from a single tree on the Loresho Estate in Kabete, Kenya", "quotes": [ { "text": "The tree was labeled “French Mission.”", "for": "French Mission" }, { "text": "However, recent genetic tests have indicated that SL34 is related to the Typica genetic group.", "for": "genetic group" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s22", "title": "K7", "authors": "World Coffee Research", "publisher": "World Coffee Research, Arabica Coffee Varieties catalogue", "url": "https://varieties.worldcoffeeresearch.org/varieties/k7", "tier": "A/B", "tierNote": "WCR catalogue data are A; its history narrative is B. Its leaf rust rating could not be read unambiguously and is not used.", "quote": "K7 was released in Kenya in 1936 after five generations of selection from the original population", "quotes": [ { "text": "Selected from French Mission. Bourbon-like genetic background.", "for": "lineage" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s23", "title": "Ruiru 11", "authors": "World Coffee Research", "publisher": "World Coffee Research, Arabica Coffee Varieties catalogue", "url": "https://varieties.worldcoffeeresearch.org/varieties/ruiru-11", "tier": "A/B", "tierNote": "WCR catalogue data (breeder, parentage, release, disease ratings) are A; its history narrative (1968 epidemic, 50% loss; breeding from the 1970s) is B. The entry uses only “late 1960s” and “1970s”, which source 27 also supports; 1968 and 50% are not used (one Tier B source).", "quote": "Ruiru 11 owes its existence to a coffee berry disease (CBD) epidemic in 1968 that lead to the loss of 50% of Kenya’s production. … This led to the development of Ruiru 11, which was released in 1985.", "quotes": [ { "text": "Catimor (female parent) x multicross selection involving K7, SL28, N39, Rume Sudan, among others (male parent).", "for": "parentage" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s24", "title": "Batian", "authors": "World Coffee Research", "publisher": "World Coffee Research, Arabica Coffee Varieties catalogue", "url": "https://varieties.worldcoffeeresearch.org/varieties/batian", "tier": "A/B", "tierNote": "WCR catalogue data are A (several rating fields on the page could not be read unambiguously and are not used); history narrative B.", "quote": "Batian was released in Kenya in 2010.", "quotes": [ { "text": "Composite variety containing parentage from: SL28, SL34, Rume Sudan, N39, K7, SL4 and the Timor Hybrid.", "for": "parentage" }, { "text": "resistance to coffee berry disease", "for": "CBD" }, { "text": "tolerance to coffee leaf rust", "for": "leaf rust" }, { "text": "Intermediate resistance", "for": "leaf rust rating" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s25", "title": "History of Arabica", "authors": "World Coffee Research", "publisher": "World Coffee Research, Arabica Coffee Varieties catalogue", "url": "https://varieties.worldcoffeeresearch.org/arabica-2/history-of-arabica", "tier": "B", "tierNote": "WCR history narrative (Tier B); used with the ICO profile (source 10) for the 1893 date at Bura.", "quote": "Recent genetic tests have confirmed that the main seeds taken from Ethiopia to Yemen were related to the Bourbon and Typica varieties. From Yemen, descendants of Bourbon and Typica spread around the world, forming the basis of most modern arabica coffee cultivation.", "quotes": [ { "text": "another one in 1893 in Bura (Taita Hills, Kenya)", "for": "Bura mission" }, { "text": "These introductions are the origin of what became known as \"French Mission\" coffee.", "for": "French Mission coffee" }, { "text": "In each of the missions, coffee seeds originating from La Réunion were planted.", "for": "seed from Réunion" }, { "text": "French missionaries known as Spiritans (from the Congregation of the Holy Ghost)", "for": "Spiritans" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s26", "title": "Additional physiological races of coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix) identified in Kenya", "authors": "Gichuru, E. K.; Ithiru, J. M.; Silva, M. C.; Pereira, A. P.; Várzea, V. M. P.", "year": 2012, "publisher": "Tropical Plant Pathology (short communication)", "url": "https://scielo.br/j/tpp/a/StL8f8kbms8gdYnwHz3QCdk/?lang=en", "tier": "A", "quote": "resulted in the release of the cultivar Ruiru 11 in 1985, which is resistant to CLR and CBD", "quotes": [ { "text": "led to the release of the cultivar Batian in the year 2010", "for": "Batian" }, { "text": "which also combines resistance to both CBD and CLR", "for": "Batian resistance" }, { "text": "In Kenya, it is currently the second most important disease, and breeding coffee to obtain new resistant cultivars", "for": "leaf rust rank" }, { "text": "Twenty-four samples were characterized, out of which 22 samples corresponded to new races of the pathogen.", "for": "samples" }, { "text": "A total of six new races (III, XVII, XXIII, XXXVI, XLI and XLII) were characterized, revealing three new virulence genes", "for": "races" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s27", "title": "Coffee sustainability in Kenya: role played by improved varieties", "authors": "Gichimu, B. M.", "year": 2014, "publisher": "25th International Conference on Coffee Science (ASIC), Armenia, Colombia", "url": "https://researchgate.net/profile/Bernard-Gichimu/publication/281626727_Coffee_Sustainability_in_Kenya_Role_Played_by_Improved_Varieties/links/55f0746c08ae199d47c2110d/Coffee-Sustainability-in-Kenya-Role-Played-by-Improved-Varieties.pdf", "tier": "B", "quote": "A breeding programme for disease resistance started in 1971 after the outbreak of CBD and CLR in the late 1960s.", "quotes": [], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s28", "title": "Colletotrichum coffeanum (Crop Knowledge Master)", "authors": "Ferreira, S. A.; Boley, R. A.", "year": 1991, "publisher": "Department of Plant Pathology, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawaii at Manoa", "url": "https://cms.ctahr.hawaii.edu/ckm/Home/Plant-Disease-Pathogens/Fungi/Fungi-genera-starting-with-A--D/Colletotrichum-coffeanum", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "University extension fact sheet (November 1991).", "quote": "Coffee Berry Disease was first reported from Kenya in 1922.", "quotes": [], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s29", "title": "Historical analysis of coffee production and associated challenges in Kenya from 1893 to 2018", "authors": "Wanzala, R. W.; Marwa, N. W.; Nanziri, E. L.", "year": 2022, "publisher": "Southern Journal for Contemporary History 47(2), 51–90", "url": "https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/jch/article/download/6200/4694/18125", "doi": "10.38140/sjch.v47i2.6200", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Peer-reviewed history journal. Its statements on Kibwezi (1893), the 1918 ordinance and the 1930s are each cited by the authors to earlier works (Kieran; Musalia; Talbott); its Swynnerton passage cites Swynnerton and Musalia.", "quote": "Coffee was first grown in Kibwezi in 1893 by missionaries", "quotes": [ { "text": "introduction of the Coffee Planting Ordinance in 1918", "for": "1918 ordinance" }, { "text": "provided for an annual licence which was only handed out to white settler farmers", "for": "licences for settlers only" }, { "text": "in the 1930s, indigenous Kenyan farmers at Kisii, Meru, and Embu were allowed formally", "for": "1930s" }, { "text": "the Swynnerton Plan between 1954 and 1959", "for": "Swynnerton Plan" }, { "text": "It provided a window for natives to grow coffee, access credit and market their cherries", "for": "effect of the plan" }, { "text": "commercial growing of coffee in Kenya commenced at the end of the 19th century (1899)", "for": "commercial growing" }, { "text": "around the Kiambu region, by white settler farmers", "for": "Kiambu settlers" }, { "text": "global coffee prices fell 70 per cent below the cost of production from 1997 to 2001", "for": "price fall" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s30", "title": "Projected Shifts in Coffea arabica Suitability among Major Global Producing Regions Due to Climate Change", "authors": "Ovalle-Rivera, O.; Läderach, P.; Bunn, C.; Obersteiner, M.; Schroth, G.", "year": 2015, "publisher": "PLOS One 10(4), e0124155", "url": "https://www.ebi.ac.uk/europepmc/webservices/rest/PMC4397088/fullTextXML", "doi": "10.1371/journal.pone.0124155", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Full text read through Europe PMC (PMC4397088).", "quote": "Coffee regions in Ethiopia and Kenya are projected to become more suitable", "quotes": [ { "text": "In East Africa, climates suitable for Arabica coffee are predicted to shift from 400–2000 masl to 800–2500 masl.", "for": "East African shift" }, { "text": "There would be little change in suitability of the areas in Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, and Burundi that currently grow Arabica.", "for": "Kenya" }, { "text": "There may be gains as areas at higher elevations (1500–2400 masl) become more suitable.", "for": "gains at altitude" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s31", "title": "Kenyan coffee: a product that is already exceptional, an economic strategy under construction", "authors": "CIRAD (Saincelaire, M.; Sanguine, Y.; with Fauvelle, É.; Pinard, F.)", "year": 2026, "publisher": "CIRAD (French agricultural research centre for international development), news page", "url": "https://www.cirad.fr/en/cirad-news/news/2026/towards-a-geographical-indication-for-kenyan-coffee", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "News page of a French public research organisation (state institution), dated 13 April 2026 in the text and 13 May 2026 in the page metadata. Used only for the status of a geographical indication, without numbers.", "quote": "the draft bill on GIs is taking time to be adopted.", "quotes": [ { "text": "the volcanic regions of Mount Kenya, the Rift Valley and the West", "for": "regions" } ], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "s32", "title": "Amendments to Coffee “C”® Appendix IV (Coffee “C” Differentials) (Submission No. 24-6)", "year": 2024, "publisher": "ICE Futures U.S., filing to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission", "url": "https://www.ice.com/publicdocs/regulatory_filings/24-6_Coffee_Rule_Amendments.pdf", "tier": "A", "tierNote": "Exchange filing of 11 January 2024; effective 26 January 2024 for the March 2026 contract and all subsequent months.", "quote": "Kenya and Costa Rica - Differential is being increased to a 10 cent per pound premium, from the current par delivery level.", "quotes": [], "accessed": "2026-11-02T00:00:00.000Z" } ], "markdown": "## Snapshot\n\nKenyan coffee is highly regarded for blending and specialty markets, according to a 2017 report of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).7 USDA puts its 2025/26 crop at 850,000 bags of 60 kg.1 That is 0.48% of the world total of 178.8 million bags (our calculation).1 For 2026/27, USDA forecasts 950,000 bags.1\n\nIn the statistics of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Kenya produced 49,500 t of green coffee in 2024.3 That ranks 24th among 78 countries and is 0.44% of their total (our calculation).3 Coffee production by country places Kenya among the small producers known to specialty buyers.7\n\nKenya grows arabica (*C. arabica*). USDA lists it only in its arabica table.1 The International Coffee Organization (ICO) puts arabica at over 99% of Kenyan coffee.10 The crop is mostly washed: the ICO states that about 90% is wet processed at washing stations of cooperative societies and estates.10\n\n## Where coffee grows\n\nCoffee grows in the Western, Rift Valley, Central Kenya and Mount Kenya regions, according to the ICO.10 Its 2019 profile counts coffee in 32 of Kenya’s 47 counties.10 In 2000, FAO placed the production regions north and north-east of Nairobi.18\n\n
\n
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Interactive relief map of Kenya’s coffee highlands. Layers: production and area by county in 2015/16 (Coffee Directorate); the altitudes KALRO recommends on each side of the Rift Valley; the Coffee Research Institute and the Nairobi Coffee Exchange; and places in coffee history, with the disputed first sites marked.9,14,10,13,7,5,25,29
\n
\n\n**Counties.** In the Coffee Directorate’s table for 2015/16, Kiambu grew 12,793 t, Nyeri 7,541 t, Kirinyaga 6,193 t and Murang’a 5,830 t.9 Together these four central counties grew 70% of the national 46,121 t (our calculation).9 Embu, Machakos, Meru, Kericho, Kisii and Bungoma each grew 1,200–2,100 t.9 The full table is under Coffee by county.\n\n**Altitude.** The Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) recommends 1,400–2,000 m east of the Rift Valley for planting coffee.14 West of the Rift, it recommends 1,500–1,900 m.14 The ICO gives a wider band of 1,400–2,200 m for where coffee is grown.10\n\n
\n
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Section across Kenya’s highlands, from Mount Elgon through Kitale and across the Rift Valley at Nakuru, over the Aberdares to Nyeri and past Mount Kenya to Meru. Shaded: the altitudes KALRO recommends for coffee, 1,500–1,900 m west and 1,400–2,000 m east of the Rift. Dashed: the ICO’s upper limit of 2,200 m. Terrain from 0.1° mean relief, so summits appear lower than they are.14,10,13
\n
\n\n## Climate and harvest\n\nKenya has two rainy seasons. The meteorological department calls March to May the main rainfall season over most of the country.15 It names October to December the “short rains”.15 The ICO gives the main rainy seasons as March–May and November–December.10 Coffee is mainly rain-fed.10\n\n**Two flowerings, two crops.** East of the Rift Valley, a 1970 study found main flowerings either in February–March or in October–November.16 Kenya picks two crops a year, but the sources consulted name different months.10,7,18 The ICO gives April–June and October–December.10 USDA (2017) calls September–December the early or “fly” crop and March–July the main crop.7 Harvest calendars compares the dates (see also Contested).\n\n**Rainfall.** KALRO gives an average annual rainfall of 1,000 mm east and 1,145 mm west of the Rift for coffee.14\n\n**Picking.** Coffee is picked selectively, ripe cherry by ripe cherry, according to FAO.17\n\n## Farms and people\n\nKenya has two kinds of producer: smallholders organised in cooperative societies, and estates.10 The ICO counts about 3,000 estates and over 700,000 smallholders.10 Elsewhere in the same profile it gives 800,000 smallholders in about 500 cooperative societies.10 It classes about 2,400 estates as small, at about 2–8 ha (source: 5–20 acres).10 About 100 are large, above about 20 ha (source: over 50 acres).10\n\n**Shares.** In the Coffee Directorate’s 2015/16 table, cooperatives held 87,428 ha and estates 26,973 ha, of 114,401 ha.9 Estates thus held 24% of the area (our calculation).9 In the ICO’s production table, estates grew 10,997 t of 41,375 t in 2017/18, 27% (our calculation).10 About 80% of Kenyan coffee is sold through producer cooperatives, according to USDA’s post in 2026.5\n\n**Area.** USDA’s post estimates 105,000 ha harvested in 2025/26 and 106,000 ha in 2026/27.5 In its 2025 report, the area planted fell from 112,000 ha in 2020 to 105,000 ha in 2024.6 The loss came largely from farms in peri-urban Nairobi, Thika, Kiambu and Nyeri, uprooted for housing.6,5 Living income describes what Kenyan coffee households earn.\n\n## Varieties\n\nThe ICO names the main varieties as SL28, SL34, K7, Ruiru 11, Batian and Blue Mountain.10 The first three are old selections. SL28 was selected in 1935 from a single tree of a population called Tanganyika Drought Resistant.20 SL34 comes from a tree labelled “French Mission” on the Loresho Estate in Kabete.21 Both were selected at the Scott Agricultural Laboratories and are susceptible to coffee berry disease and leaf rust.20,21 K7 was released in 1936 after five generations of selection from French Mission coffee.22\n\n**Disease-resistant varieties.** Coffee berry disease (CBD) was first reported in Kenya in 1922.28 Outbreaks of CBD and leaf rust in the late 1960s led to a breeding programme for disease resistance, begun in the 1970s, that produced Ruiru 11.27,23 Ruiru 11 was released in 1985 and Batian in 2010.26 Ruiru 11 resists CBD and leaf rust.26,23 Batian is resistant to CBD.24,26 For leaf rust, a 2012 study and the ICO describe it as resistant, while World Coffee Research rates it as intermediate resistance.26,10,24 F1 hybrids notes that another study gives 1986 for the release of Ruiru 11. Arabica varieties and coffee berry disease give the background.\n\n## Processing\n\nMost Kenyan coffee is washed.10 Cooperative societies built their own pulping units, called factories.17 The ICO’s 2019 profile counts 1,001 cooperative pulping stations and 3,000 estate pulping stations (year of data not stated).10\n\n**The washed process in Kenya.** FAO described the steps in 2000.17 After pulping, the parchment is sorted into grades 1 and 2 and “lights”.17 Fermentation takes 1–4 days, faster on warm days.17 Soaking the parchment for about 12 hours after fermentation improves quality.17 The final wash runs in concrete channels.17 Parchment then dries on wire-mesh tables, normally for about 14 days.17 Washed process and fermentation compare these steps with other origins.\n\n**Grading.** Dry parchment is hulled and graded into export grades.17,10 The East African standard EAS 130 defines E, AA, AB, PB, C, TT and T by bean size, shape and density.19 The ICO adds MH and ML and counts E, AA, AB and PB as premium grades.10 Green coffee grading gives the screen sizes.\n\n## History\n\n**Legend and evidence.** The ICO places the first coffee at Bura in the Taita Hills in 1893.10 According to World Coffee Research, French Spiritan missionaries founded a mission at Bura that year and planted seed from Réunion.25 A 2022 historical study, citing earlier work, instead names Kibwezi, where missionaries first grew coffee in 1893.29 The ICO also names Kibwezi, under irrigation, and Kikuyu near Nairobi as later sites.10 Seedlings from the missions gave rise to “French Mission” coffee.25\n\n**Settlers and licensing.** Commercial growing began in 1899 around Kiambu, by white settlers, according to the 2022 study, citing earlier work.29 The same study, citing a doctoral thesis, states that a Coffee Planting Ordinance of 1918 issued annual licences to white settler farmers only.29 In the 1930s, African farmers in Kisii, Meru and Embu were formally allowed to plant coffee, according to the study; the ICO describes “controlled planting of coffee outside European-settled areas, particularly in Kisii and Meru”.29,10\n\n**Swynnerton Plan.** The Swynnerton Plan ran from 1954 to 1959.29 It opened a window for Africans to grow coffee, obtain credit and market their cherries, according to the 2022 study, citing earlier work.29 Coffee auctions were established in 1934 and the first was held in September 1935, according to the ICO; USDA dates the Nairobi Coffee Exchange to 1935.10,6,5\n\n**Peak and decline.** In FAO statistics, production rose from 28,100 t in 1961 to a peak of 128,700 t in 1988.2 It has stayed between 34,500 t and 55,443 t since 2001.2 The 2022 study links the fall to prices far below the cost of production from 1997 to 2001.29\n\n## Trade and institutions\n\n**Exports.** USDA’s post expects exports of 840,000 bags in 2025/26 and 940,000 bags in 2026/27.5 The European Union is the main destination; the United States took 17.2% in 2024/25.5 The statistics office values unroasted coffee exports at KSh 52,058 million in 2025.8 Kenyans drank about 62,000 bags in 2025/26, by USDA’s estimate.5\n\n**The auction.** The Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE) handles over 95% of coffee sales, according to USDA’s 2026 report.5 Licensed brokers sell for growers; the Capital Markets Authority had licensed 16 of them by early 2026.5,12 The grower or the grower’s agent sets a reserve price for each lot.12 Auctions and competitions describes how the exchange works.\n\n**Direct sales.** Growers may also sell directly to buyers abroad, a channel the ICO calls the “second window”.10 In 2015/16, direct sales were 6,492 t in the Coffee Directorate’s 2017 table and 7,544 t in the ICO profile, of premium grades AA, AB, E and PB.9,10\n\n**The 2026 law.** The Coffee Act, 2026 received assent on 13 March and came into force on 27 March 2026.11 It re-established the Coffee Board of Kenya and created a Coffee Research and Training Institute.11,5 It places the licensing of pulping stations, mills, roasters and warehouses with county governments (section 25); USDA notes that licensing of millers moved there from the Agriculture and Food Authority.11,5\n\n**On the futures market.** From the March 2026 contract, Kenyan coffee delivered against New York’s Coffee “C” earns a premium of 10 US cents per lb.32 Differentials explains these premiums.\n\n\n\n## Production over time\n\nThe FAO series runs from 1961. Production rose from 28,100 t in 1961 to 101,218 t in 1977 and peaked at 128,700 t in 1988.2 It then fell to 53,715 t in 1998.2 After an isolated 100,700 t in 2000, it has stayed between 34,500 t (2021) and 55,443 t (2003).2 The 2024 value, 49,500 t, is 38% of the 1988 peak (our calculation).2\n\n
\n
\n
Green coffee production of Kenya, 1961–2024, in thousand tonnes, from FAO statistics by calendar year. The peak was 128,700 t in 1988.2
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\n\n| Year | t | Year | t | Year | t | Year | t |\n|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|\n| 1961 | 28,1002 | 1977 | 101,2182 | 1993 | 75,1002 | 2009 | 54,0002 |\n| 1962 | 50,0002 | 1978 | 84,3322 | 1994 | 79,9002 | 2010 | 42,0002 |\n| 1963 | 40,5002 | 1979 | 75,0822 | 1995 | 95,4002 | 2011 | 36,3002 |\n| 1964 | 41,4002 | 1980 | 91,3342 | 1996 | 97,9762 | 2012 | 49,0002 |\n| 1965 | 39,3002 | 1981 | 99,7172 | 1997 | 68,6422 | 2013 | 39,8002 |\n| 1966 | 56,9002 | 1982 | 87,4362 | 1998 | 53,7152 | 2014 | 49,5002 |\n| 1967 | 48,0002 | 1983 | 86,0642 | 1999 | 68,1002 | 2015 | 42,0002 |\n| 1968 | 39,6002 | 1984 | 118,5002 | 2000 | 100,7002 | 2016 | 46,1002 |\n| 1969 | 52,4002 | 1985 | 93,6002 | 2001 | 51,7002 | 2017 | 38,6202 |\n| 1970 | 58,3002 | 1986 | 113,9262 | 2002 | 51,9002 | 2018 | 41,3752 |\n| 1971 | 59,5002 | 1987 | 104,6792 | 2003 | 55,4432 | 2019 | 44,5002 |\n| 1972 | 62,0482 | 1988 | 128,7002 | 2004 | 48,4312 | 2020 | 36,9002 |\n| 1973 | 71,1902 | 1989 | 116,9002 | 2005 | 45,2002 | 2021 | 34,5002 |\n| 1974 | 70,1032 | 1990 | 103,9002 | 2006 | 48,3002 | 2022 | 51,9002 |\n| 1975 | 66,1522 | 1991 | 86,4002 | 2007 | 53,3682 | 2023 | 48,7002 |\n| 1976 | 80,3032 | 1992 | 85,3002 | 2008 | 42,0002 | 2024 | 49,5002 |\n\n**FAO and the Kenyan coffee year.** Several FAO values equal Kenyan figures for the coffee year ending in that calendar year (our reading).2,10 FAO’s 38,620 t for 2017 and 41,375 t for 2018 are the ICO’s totals for 2016/17 and 2017/18.2,10 FAO’s 46,100 t for 2016 rounds the Coffee Directorate’s 46,121 t for 2015/16.2,9\n\n**Yield.** FAO’s average yield was 436 kg/ha in 2024.4 It was 892 kg/ha in 1980 and has stayed below 480 kg/ha since 2001.4 Coffee yields compares origins.\n\n**USDA’s recent series.** In USDA’s tables, production was 860,000 bags in 2021/22, 750,000 in 2022/23, 825,000 in 2023/24, 950,000 in 2024/25 and 850,000 in 2025/26.1 USDA uses an October–September marketing year; FAO uses calendar years.1,3\n\n**Coffee sold to marketing boards.** The national statistics office counts coffee sold to marketing boards: 28.2 thousand t in 2021, 41.9 in 2022, 32.4 in 2023, 44.9 in 2024 and 41.6 in 2025.8 The source marks the 2025 column as provisional.8 These sales figures are lower than USDA’s production figures (see Contested).8,1\n\n## Coffee by county\n\nNo county table of the national statistics office could be accessed for this entry. The table below uses the Coffee Directorate’s data for 2015/16, published by the agriculture ministry.9 It gives production in tonnes (type of coffee not stated) and area by estates and cooperatives.9 The 15 largest counties are listed; 16 others are grouped.9\n\n
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Coffee production by county in coffee year 2015/16, in tonnes, with county names as in the source. Data: Agriculture and Food Authority, Coffee Directorate.9
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\n\n| County | Production 2015/16 (t) | Share (our calculation) | Area, estates (ha) | Area, cooperatives (ha) | Area, total (ha) |\n|---|---|---|---|---|---|\n| Kiambu | 12,7939 | 27.7% | 12,814 | 10,830 | 23,644 |\n| Nyeri | 7,5419 | 16.4% | 1,024 | 12,448 | 13,472 |\n| Kirinyaga | 6,1939 | 13.4% | 1,590 | 6,253 | 7,843 |\n| Murang’a | 5,8309 | 12.6% | 4,602 | 13,912 | 18,514 |\n| Embu | 2,0759 | 4.5% | 336 | 6,499 | 6,835 |\n| Machakos | 1,9559 | 4.2% | 1,547 | 6,060 | 7,607 |\n| Meru | 1,7319 | 3.8% | 826 | 7,716 | 8,542 |\n| Kericho | 1,4489 | 3.1% | 90 | 2,380 | 2,470 |\n| Kisii | 1,4159 | 3.1% | 101 | 3,765 | 3,866 |\n| Bungoma | 1,2899 | 2.8% | 183 | 6,280 | 6,463 |\n| Nyamira | 1,0199 | 2.2% | 36 | 1,910 | 1,946 |\n| Tharaka-Nithi | 8639 | 1.9% | 255 | 3,412 | 3,667 |\n| Nakuru | 7999 | 1.7% | 1,480 | 525 | 2,005 |\n| Trans Nzoia | 4039 | 0.9% | 1,625 | 270 | 1,895 |\n| Nandi | 3849 | 0.8% | 71 | 635 | 706 |\n| 16 other counties | 3849 | 0.8% | 393 | 4,533 | 4,921 |\n| Total (as printed) | 46,1219 | 100% | 26,9739 | 87,4289 | 114,4019 |\n\nKiambu, Nyeri, Kirinyaga and Murang’a grew 70.2% of the crop; with Embu, Meru and Tharaka-Nithi, the counties around Mount Kenya and the Aberdares grew 80.3% (our calculation).9 Among the 15 largest counties, estates hold more area than cooperatives only in Kiambu, Nakuru and Trans Nzoia.9 Among them, output per hectare varied from about 200 kg/ha in Meru and Bungoma to 790 kg/ha in Kirinyaga (our calculation, production over total area).9 The county rows add up to 46,122 t and 114,396 ha; the printed totals are used.9 The area rose by 640 ha from 113,761 ha in 2014/15.9\n\n## Cooperatives and estates\n\n| Coffee year | Estates (t) | Cooperatives (t) | Total as printed (t) | Estates’ share (our calculation) |\n|---|---|---|---|---|\n| 2012/13 | 13,77310 | 26,09210 | 39,86510 | 34.5% |\n| 2013/14 | 16,80510 | 32,65210 | 49,47510 | 34.0% |\n| 2014/15 | 14,80810 | 27,23010 | 42,03810 | 35.2% |\n| 2015/16 | 15,26710 | 30,75810 | 46,12110 | 33.2% |\n| 2016/17 | 14,15110 | 24,46810 | 38,62010 | 36.6% |\n| 2017/18 | 10,99710 | 30,38110 | 41,37510 | 26.6% |\n\nIn four of the six years the printed total differs from the sum of estates and cooperatives, by 1–96 t; shares are calculated on the sum.10 Estates held 24% of the area in 2015/16 but grew 33% of the crop that year (our calculation).9,10 The ICO’s Table 5 also counts 14 cooperative unions, 17 coffee millers, 10 commercial marketing agencies and 77 coffee dealers (year of data not stated).10\n\n## Processing practice\n\n| Step | Kenyan practice | Source |\n|---|---|---|\n| Picking | Selective picking of ripe cherries | FAO 200017 |\n| Pulping | At cooperative “factories” or estate pulping stations; pulped coffee graded into 1, 2 and lights (FAO 2000) or 1, 2, 3 and lights (ICO 2019) | FAO 200017, ICO 201910 |\n| Fermentation | 1–4 days, depending on the weather | FAO 200017 |\n| Soaking | About 12 h after fermentation | FAO 200017 |\n| Washing | Concrete channels; parchment pushed against the water | FAO 200017 |\n| Drying | Wire-mesh tables, normally about 14 days; some large estates dry mechanically | FAO 200017 |\n| Moisture | About 55% after pulping, dried to 11% (basis not stated) | FAO 200017 |\n| Storage of parchment | At most 6 months before hulling | FAO 200017 |\n| Share washed | About 90% | ICO 201910 |\n\n**Grades.** EAS 130 sets the grades by screen.19 E beans are two seeds joined together and stay on screen 21.19 AA pass screen 21 and stay on 18; AB pass 18 and stay on 16; PB (peaberries) pass 17 and stay on 12.19 C pass 16 and stay on 10, T pass screen 7, and TT are light beans blown out of AA, AB and E.19 At least 95% of the beans must fall in the stated grade.19 The Coffee Act, 2026 requires commercial millers to comply with the prescribed standard grades.11 Peaberries and bean shapes covers PB.\n\nNo source consulted for this entry describes a Kenyan “double fermentation” as a standard step, or measures how widely the 12-hour soak is used today.\n\n## Research institute\n\nThe Coffee Research Institute (CRI) of KALRO has its headquarters in Ruiru, Kiambu County, about 33 km from Nairobi.13 It has centres in Ruiru and Kitale (Trans Nzoia).13 Its sub-centres are at Azania (Kiambu), Koru (Kericho), Kisii (Kisii), Namwela (Bungoma) and Mariene (Meru).13 It bred Ruiru 11 and Batian as the Coffee Research Foundation, according to World Coffee Research.23,24 The Coffee Act, 2026 establishes a Coffee Research and Training Institute.11\n\n| Variety | Origin | Year | Disease reaction | Source |\n|---|---|---|---|---|\n| SL28 | Selection from Tanganyika Drought Resistant, Scott Agricultural Laboratories | 1935 | Susceptible to CBD and leaf rust | WCR20 |\n| SL34 | Single tree labelled French Mission, Loresho Estate, Kabete; Typica-related | Selected late 1930s | Susceptible to CBD and leaf rust | WCR21 |\n| K7 | Selection from French Mission; Bourbon-like | Released 1936 | Not used here (rating unclear) | WCR22 |\n| Ruiru 11 | Catimor × multi-cross of K7, SL28, N39, Rume Sudan and others; F1 hybrid seed | Released 1985 | Resistant to CBD and leaf rust | WCR23, Gichuru et al.26 |\n| Batian | Composite with SL28, SL34, Rume Sudan, N39, K7, SL4 and Timor Hybrid parentage | Released 2010 | Resistant to CBD; leaf rust: resistant (Gichuru et al.; ICO) or intermediate resistance (WCR rating) | WCR24, Gichuru et al.26, ICO10 |\n\n**New rust races.** Leaf rust is Kenya’s second most important coffee disease, after CBD, according to a 2012 study.26 In samples from resistant varieties and breeding lines at Ruiru and Koru, it found 22 of 24 samples to be new races for Kenya.26 Six new races were characterised.26 F1 hybrids explains how Ruiru 11 seed is produced.\n\n## Marketing system\n\n| Element | Rule or value | Source |\n|---|---|---|\n| Nairobi Coffee Exchange | Spot market founded in 1935 (USDA 2025, 2026); auctions from 1934, first auction September 1935 (ICO); “since early 1930s” (USDA 2017) | USDA5,6,7, ICO10 |\n| Licensing of the exchange | Capital Markets Authority (2020 regulations) | Kenya Gazette12 |\n| Reserve price | Set by the grower or the grower’s agent, for each lot | Kenya Gazette12 |\n| Share of sales through the NCE | Over 90% (2025 report); over 95% (2026 report) | USDA6,5 |\n| Brokers | 16 licensed by the Capital Markets Authority (2026 report) | USDA5 |\n| Sales channels in law | Auction at an exchange, direct sales, an international exchange or other prescribed methods (section 72) | Coffee Act, 202611 |\n| Payment | Direct Settlement System, a digital payment platform | USDA 20265, Coffee Act, 202611 |\n| Direct sales | 2015/16: 6,492 t, USD 39.3 million, USD 303 per 50 kg average (Coffee Directorate); 7,544 t, USD 41.0 million (ICO) | Coffee Directorate9, ICO10 |\n| Auction price | About USD 268.77 per 50-kg bag (April 2026 average) | USDA5 |\n| Licensing of pulping stations, growers’ mills, roasters, warehouses and commercial millers | County governments (section 25) | Coffee Act, 202611 |\n| Regulator | Coffee Board of Kenya (section 4) | Coffee Act, 202611 |\n\nDirect sales were 14% (Coffee Directorate) or 16% (ICO) of the 2015/16 crop by weight (our calculation).9,10 The Coffee Directorate notes that direct sales are of premium grades, while auction prices reflect all grades.9 The two prices are therefore not comparable.\n\n**The road to the 2026 Act.** In May 2025, a Coffee Bill to codify the marketing reforms was still pending in parliament.6 The Act removes coffee from the Crops Act’s list of scheduled crops (section 107).11 It refers to a Kenya Coffee Mark of Origin.11 As of April 2026, a draft bill to create a dedicated law on geographical indications was still pending, according to CIRAD, a French research centre.31\n\n**Planting programme.** A government-backed programme supplies seedlings and fertiliser in the Central, Eastern and Rift Valley regions, through the New Kenya Planters Co-operative Union.5 The Coffee Research Institute faces a large backlog in supplying planting material.5\n\n## Climate risk\n\nA 2015 global model projects little change by the 2050s in the suitability of Kenya’s present arabica areas.30 In East Africa as a whole, suitable climates are projected to move from 400–2,000 m to 800–2,500 m.30 Areas at 1,500–2,400 m may gain.30 These are model projections, not forecasts by Coffearium.\n\nThe sources consulted also name disease and land use as pressures. Leaf rust races able to infect resistant lines were reported in a 2012 study.26 Coffee farms near Nairobi have been uprooted for housing.6,5 Under the EU deforestation regulation (EUDR), larger exporters must comply by 30 December 2026, according to USDA.5\n\n## Reference values\n\n| Parameter | Value | Source |\n|---|---|---|\n| Production, USDA | 850,000 60-kg bags (2025/26); 950,000 forecast (2026/27) | USDA1 |\n| Production, FAO | 49,500 t (2024); peak 128,700 t (1988) | FAO2,3 |\n| Share of world output | 0.48% (2025/26, USDA); 0.44% (2024, FAO); our calculation | USDA1, FAO3 |\n| Coffee sold to marketing boards | 44.9 thousand t (2024); 41.6 thousand t (2025, provisional) | KNBS8 |\n| Yield | 436 kg/ha (2024) | FAO4 |\n| Area | 114,401 ha (2015/16); 105,000 ha harvested (2025/26, post estimate) | Coffee Directorate9, USDA5 |\n| Main counties | Kiambu, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang’a: 70.2% of output (2015/16, our calculation) | Coffee Directorate9 |\n| Altitude | 1,400–2,000 m east, 1,500–1,900 m west of the Rift (recommended); 1,400–2,200 m (ICO) | KALRO14, ICO10 |\n| Rainfall | 1,000 mm east, 1,145 mm west of the Rift (annual average) | KALRO14 |\n| Rainy seasons | March–May (main); October–December (short rains) | KMD15 |\n| Smallholders | 700,000–800,000 in about 500 cooperative societies | ICO10 |\n| Estates | About 3,000 | ICO10 |\n| Estates’ share of output | 26.6–36.6% (2012/13–2017/18) | ICO10 |\n| Share washed | About 90% | ICO10 |\n| Fermentation; soak | 1–4 days; about 12 h | FAO17 |\n| Drying | Wire-mesh tables, about 14 days, to 11% (basis not stated) | FAO17 |\n| Grades | E, AA, AB, PB, C, TT, T (EAS 130); ≥ 95% of beans in grade | EAC19 |\n| Exports | 840,000 bags (2025/26); 940,000 forecast (2026/27) | USDA5 |\n| Export value, unroasted | KSh 52,058 million (2025, provisional) | KNBS8 |\n| Domestic consumption | 62,000 bags (2025/26 and 2026/27) | USDA5 |\n| Share of sales at the NCE | Over 95% (2026 report, no year given) | USDA5 |\n| Coffee “C” differential | +10 US cents per lb (from the March 2026 contract) | ICE32 |\n| CBD first reported | 1922 | Ferreira and Boley28 |\n| Ruiru 11; Batian | Released 1985; 2010 | Gichuru et al.26 |\n| Coffee Act, 2026 | Assent 13 Mar 2026; commencement 27 Mar 2026 | Act11 |\n\n## Open questions\n\n- **Recent county statistics.** The national statistics office’s Economic Survey tables by grower type and the AFA county series after 2015/16 could not be accessed. The county table rests on 2015/16 data.9\n- **Which crop is main.** The sources disagree on which harvest is the main crop and on its months (see Contested).10,7,18\n- **First planting.** Bura or Kibwezi in 1893 is not settled by any primary record consulted.10,25,29\n- **Variety shares.** No source consulted gives the share of the area under SL28, SL34, Ruiru 11 or Batian.\n- **Processing today.** The detailed description of the washed process dates from 2000; no recent survey of fermentation and soaking times was consulted.17\n- **Ports.** No official source consulted names the export port or gives exports by port.\n- **After the 2026 Act.** Rules under the new Act, and the future of the 2020 exchange regulations, could not be confirmed.11,12\n\n## Key studies\n\n
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Wanzala, Marwa and Nanziri, 2022 – Kenyan coffee from 1893 to 2018. A historical review of coffee in Kenya, from the first missions through colonial licensing, the opening to African growers and the Swynnerton Plan, to liberalisation and decline. It places the first coffee at Kibwezi, not Bura.

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Southern Journal for Contemporary History 47(2), 51–90 · doi:10.38140/sjch.v47i2.6200

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Wormer and Gituanja, 1970 – Flowering of arabica in Kenya. Followed floral initiation and flowering east of the Rift Valley. Main flowerings came either in February–March or in October–November; they were initiated from about August to December and June to September, respectively.

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Experimental Agriculture 6(2), 157–170 · doi:10.1017/S0014479700000211

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Gichuru et al., 2012 – New leaf rust races in Kenya. Characterised rust samples taken from resistant varieties and breeding lines at Ruiru and Koru. Six races new to Kenya were found, with three new virulence genes, a threat to the resistance bred into Kenyan varieties.

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Tropical Plant Pathology, short communication · scielo.br

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Ovalle-Rivera et al., 2015 – Arabica suitability under climate change. Modelled climatic suitability for arabica in the main producing regions under climate change by the 2050s. Kenya’s present coffee areas change little, and higher land at 1,500–2,400 m may gain.

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PLOS One 10(4), e0124155 · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0124155

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