Kenya Launches 2023-2027 Strategic Plan to Boost Coffee Production to 10kg per Bush
Kenya, through the New Kenya Planters Cooperative Union (New KPCU), has launched a five-year strategic plan aimed at increasing the average coffee farmer’s yield from 2kg to 10kg per bush. The initiative was introduced at an event that gathered hundreds of farmers from over 30 coffee-growing counties, providing an opportunity to discuss the industry’s outlook for the next few years.
Hon. Wycliffe Ambetsa Oparanya, the Cabinet Secretary for Cooperatives and MSMEs, emphasized the importance of the coffee sector to Kenya’s economy, noting its role as a key foreign exchange earner and a vital source of livelihood for over 800,000 farmers and countless rural households dependent on the coffee value chain.
“Coffee remains one of Kenya’s leading foreign exchange earners and a lifeline for many rural households,” said Oparanya during the launch, highlighting the impressive growth and resilience the sector has shown over the past year. According to the 2022/23 Coffee Yearbook, coffee exports increased from 42,858 tonnes to 47,957 tonnes, with total export revenue reaching $252.12 million (Sh32.5 billion).
Despite these gains, the sector faces challenges such as erratic weather, the cyclical nature of coffee production, high input costs, shrinking coffee-growing areas, delayed payments, and fluctuating market prices. Climate change and weak governance in cooperative societies have also been barriers to growth, with many cooperatives collapsing due to poor financial practices.
However, Oparanya noted that the government has been implementing reforms aimed at improving the sector, particularly for smallholder farmers. One such initiative includes collaboration with the Co-operative University of Kenya to develop a specialized syllabus and farming manuals for coffee growers.
Daniel K. Kiprotich Chemno, chairperson of New KPCU’s board, reaffirmed Kenya’s global reputation for quality coffee and expressed confidence in the country’s potential to return to being one of the top coffee producers. He also highlighted the need to attract younger farmers into the sector and proposed boosting Robusta coffee production, particularly in Western Kenya, where it was historically cultivated.
The strategic plan also outlines key goals such as providing continued training and advisory services to farmers, expanding facilities, and increasing the tonnage of coffee milled from 3,025 tonnes in 2022/23 to 30,000 tonnes by 2027. Furthermore, New KPCU plans to upgrade its 24 warehouses to international standards and improve farmer earnings, aiming to raise the average payment per kilo of cherry from Ksh70 to at least Ksh135 by 2027.
Through these efforts, the New KPCU hopes to empower Kenyan coffee farmers and significantly increase the sector’s contribution to the national economy, ensuring that coffee remains a critical driver of growth and livelihoods in rural communities.
