Markets & Finance

Coffee price up as top quality beans trickle in

coffee

This increase coffee prices is due to the good qualities that have continued to flow into the market from Mt Kenya region. PHOTO | FILE

Coffee prices last week rose by three per cent to register a new high as quality beans continue to push up the value of the produce.

On Tuesday, a 50 kilogramme bag at the Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE) was sold at Sh31,000 from Sh30,179 the previous week, helped by an increase in quality coffee from central Kenya.

NCE chief executive officer Daniel Mbithi says the new crop has helped to maintain good performance at the auction with the price of the commodity picking an upward trajectory since the beginning of the year.

“This increase is due to the good qualities that have continued to flow into the market from Mt Kenya region, especially Kirinyaga and Nyeri,” said Mr Mbithi.

Main crop

The volume of coffee offered for sale during the auction went up to 32,058 bags compared with 26,000 bags in the previous sale.

READ: Quality crop pushes up value of local coffee at auction

Mr Mbithi expects the trend to continue given that higher volumes are flowing in from the main crop season.

According to the Coffee Directorate, the value of Kenya coffee rose 69 per cent in the three months to December after the price increased by nearly one third.

The beverage earned the country Sh2.6 billion between October and December compared with Sh1.5 billion realised in the corresponding period in 2015.