Kamwangi AB Kenya

Redcurrants, Meyer Lemon, Assam Black Tea

Origin: Kirinyaga
Variety: Mainly SL 34 (90%), SL28, K7 and Ruiru 11 account for the rest
Process: Washed
Producer: Kamwangi Smallholder Farmers
Altitude: 1500 - 1800 masl

200g

About the producer

New Ngariama Cooperative Society

The New Ngariama Farmers Cooperative manages several well-performing factories, including Kainamui, and has approximately 3000 active farmer members. Their consistent quality standards and robust traceability and quality control systems have been evident over the past years. Our partnership with the New Ngariama Farmers Cooperative dates back to 2016, and we have consistently sourced coffee from them since then.

The Kamwangi factory collects cherries from about 1000 smallholders with an average of 0,4 hectares of coffees, about 250 trees each. Fermentation is done with Fresh River Water. The same water is recycled during the day through a recycling process enabling them to significantly reduce water consumption.

They are Rainforest Alliance certified, and have established soaking pits for waste water treatment.

About the processing

Before processing, farmers hand-sort the cherries to remove unripe and overripe ones. A 3-Disc Agaarde disc pulping machine is used to remove the skin and pulp from the cherries. The coffees are then graded by density into three categories by the pulper: Grade 1 and 2 are considered higher quality and are fermented separately, while Grade 3 is categorised as a lower grade.

The coffee is then dry fermented for 18-36 hours in concrete tanks under a roof that provides shade for better temperature control during fermentation. After fermentation, the coffees are washed and again graded by density in washing channels. They are sometimes soaked in clean water overnight.

The coffee is then sun-dried for 12 to 20 days on African drying beds. The drying time will depend on weather conditions. The coffees are covered with plastic during midday and at night for protection.