It was just after midday when Richard Muthie arrived at the Mutira Farmers’ Cooperative Society coffee factory to deliver his harvest. The 50-year-old farmer brought 30 kilograms of ripe, red coffee berries, freshly picked that morning.
Since the beginning of the year, Muthie has delivered 400 kg of coffee to the cooperative’s mill in Kirinyaga County, central Kenya. He inherited the land from his father, and it has long been his livelihood. “Coffee provides me with income to meet my household needs,” Muthie said.
Muthie is one of 8,000 smallholder farmers who own the Mutira Cooperative. These farmers are vital to the cooperative’s operations, which follow the region’s agricultural seasons. Martin Kinyua, the cooperative’s secretary, explained that coffee harvesting starts in October and usually ends by December. Farmers then wait for the long rains, which are expected in March 2025, to support the next harvest.
In 2023, the cooperative processed about 4.88 million kg of coffee berries. Most of this coffee was semi-processed and sold in bulk at the Nairobi Coffee Exchange, with just 1 percent being fully processed for local consumers.
To increase profits for its members, the cooperative has set a goal to fully process at least 5 percent of its coffee and expand into international markets, including China.
Kinyua noted that higher earnings have encouraged farmers to grow more coffee. As a result, the mill’s capacity is expected to increase this year.
Victor Munene, an agronomist with the cooperative, emphasized the region’s potential. He explained that even a small plot of land, just half an acre, can generate about 96,000 Kenyan shillings ($743) in annual income.
Munene also highlighted that Kenya is capable of producing specialty coffee, which is sold at premium prices worldwide, thanks to its fertile, acidic soils.
Statistics from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics show the importance of coffee to the country. In 2023, Kenya’s coffee production reached 48,648 metric tons, earning about $251.86 million in exports.
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