Some of the world’s best Arabica beans are grown on the fertile land around Mount Kenya. But like the citizens of many former British colonies, Kenyans are partial to tea. Now an expanding middle class is getting a taste for coffee. Domestic consumption is expected to reach 3,600 tonnes this year, almost a tenth of total production. The pandemic has shown just how important a local market can be, as log jams at ports and a sharp drop in global demand crush exports. “Covid has been an eye-opener,” says Gloria Gummerus, who runs the Sakami estate in western Kenya. Out front at Spring Valley Coffee, the well-heeled brave the noise and fumes to sip flat whites topped with rippling hearts by a trendy young barista. In a single room tucked away behind a petrol pump in central Nairobi, men toil over a whirling drum, a shiny metal rack and heaps of sacks marked “Produce of Kenya”. The coffee they roast sells for as much as $11 per 250 grams online.
SOURCE: THE ECONOMIST
More Stories
Accelerating and Scaling Priority Infrastructure Development in Africa
Case Studies: Strategising for a New Era of African Trade
Africa’s Largest Lithium Producer is Keen to Take Advantage of a Rapidly Growing Global Demand
The Pro-business Stance of President Hassan is Credited with Regaining Investor Confidence
Five of Africa’s Biggest Economies Poised to Hike Rates
Kinshasa Says Kigali is Plundering its Resources
The Economic Effects of Climate Change on Farmers in Ghana
BP Quits Aviation Services in South Africa
Nigerian Entrepreneur Finds an Alternative for the Country’s Energy Crisis
Top 10 Happiest Countries in Africa
The Latest Sign of Progress in Ethiopia’s Peace Deal
Traditional Gender Norms are the Main Barrier to Ghanaian Women Pursuing Academic Careers