Specialty coffee firm seeks local partners amid Kenya market entry
From left, a coffee farmer tends to her cash crop and Coffee People CEO Annar Alas smells coffee at the Othaya coffee factory in Nyeri during a visit by the Estonian delegation. PHOTOS | FILE / DIANA NGILA
What you need to know:
The Estonian firm says it plans to edge out middlemen and directly pay farmer co-operatives in line with international coffee prices.
Its entry to Kenya follows bilateral agreements signed between Kenya and Estonia enabling commencement of direct trade partnerships.
The system has seen some local farmers earn more from their produce compared to the long chain associated with the coffee miller-dealer-auction process that has devastated earnings.
Local farmers now have a new suitor in town after an Estonian high-end coffee firm began a manhunt for Kenyan partners for its gourmet coffee.
Barista and founder of Coffee People Annar Alas said its entry to Kenya follows bilateral agreements signed between Kenya and Estonia enabling commencement of direct trade partnerships.
“We have always purchased Kenya’s best coffees from vendors in European markets and thought it is time we established a presence in Kenya for direct purchases. We are visiting farms to collect samples that shall be subjected to thorough tests ahead of trade agreements’ signing for 2017 green coffee deliveries,” he said.
Speaking during an interview with the Business Daily, Mr Alas said they planned to edge out middlemen and directly pay farmer co-operatives in line with international coffee exchange prices thereby tripling earnings for farmers.
“Our business is to improve farmer lives so as to ensure us we shall always get the best gourmet coffee for the Estonian table across our markets in Denmark, Finland and Estonia,” he said.
Mr Alas said Kenya’s coffee had a distinct taste and a "lovely smell" that stood out from other coffees, making it one of the most sought after products in the market.
Coffee People founder Annar Alas during the Kenya-Estonia business forum on November 14, 2016 in Nairobi. PHOTO | DIANA NGILA
More income
Coffee People's entry comes hardly two months after a Danish Consumers Co-operative flagged off a Sh400 million subsidiary plant, African Coffee Roasters (ACR), that employed forty Kenyans at its roasting factory.
ACR, which has the capacity to churn out over 2,000 tonnes of coffee a year, is processing and packaging produce sourced from three Nyeri Coffee societies which are then shipped directly to retail chains across Europe.
The system has seen some local farmers earn more from their produce compared to the long chain associated with the coffee miller-dealer-auction process that has devastated earnings giving farmers meagre returns.
In what will be music to many growers' ears, Mr Alas said that farmers would have a say in setting the price of their coffee as their model embraced a long term relationship to sustain supplies.
“We just road the coffee and name it according to its source which ensures the world knows who grows the coffee. The drinkers get to know the impact they made on the farmers’ lives,” he said.
The Estonian firm is now in its eighth year of operations and mainly deals in coffee roasting, roasting machines and processed coffee and tea sales.
Other players in the Kenyan space include Dormans who are currently putting up a roasting cum packaging facility at Tatu City that will also act as the firm's Africa hub.
PAYE Tax Calculator
Note: The results are not exact but very close to the actual.
