Kahuro: Decreased coffee production and poor-quality cherry have resulted in farmers affiliated with various cooperative societies earning meager returns from the crop in recent years. Mismanagement within some societies has also contributed to the decline in coffee sector returns, prompting many farmers to abandon the crop.
According to Kenya News Agency, the management of Gatagua Agro-marketing Farmers’ Cooperative Society has employed various strategies to revive coffee farming and ensure affiliated farmers earn better returns. Located in Kahuro Sub-county of Murang’a, the cooperative was established in 2019 after a split from Mugoiri Cooperative Society. Since its inception, the society, which has 972 active members, has witnessed increased production of quality coffee.
The society’s Chairman, Mr. Nahason Chege, reported that coffee production increased from 78,000 kilos in 2019 to 243,000 kilos in 2020. Chege noted that the earnings per kilo of cherry also increased from Sh38 to Sh60, attributing the better price to the production of quality coffee beans. By 2021, coffee production rose to 520,000 kilos, earning farmers Sh80 per kilo of cherry delivered to the society.
“Our production in 2022 was 489,000 kilograms, and during this year, we sold our coffee directly to a buyer, and farmers were paid Sh110 per kilo. Selling coffee directly to buyers fetches impressive prices,” Chege recalled. He added that in 2024, society members produced 440,785 kilos, earning Sh120 per delivered kilo of cherry. “For the 2024/2025 coffee season, which was paid in February this year, we paid Sh120 per kilo. This was the best price the farmers have ever earned since the inception of the society,” stated Chege.
The chairman emphasized that the management has focused on helping farmers produce quality coffee, which attracts international buyers. “Since we took over the management, we have been stressing the production of high-quality coffee. We engaged officers from the Coffee Research Institute and extension officers from Kenya Coffee Company to train our farmers on better ways of propagating their coffee bushes,” explained the chairman.
The society has established a supervisory committee to visit farmers’ farms and check the coffee’s quality. “Farmers are not supposed to intercrop coffee bushes with maize, napier grass, among other crops, apart from beans. Trees at coffee farms are supposed to be pruned,” remarked Chege. The extension officers also trained farmers on proper pruning techniques and fertilizer application.
The cooperative has partnered with fertilizer manufacturers and does not rely on subsidized fertilizer, assisting the society in producing high-quality coffee sought by local and international buyers. Members agreed to contribute 15 to 20 percent of their earnings annually for factory upgrades, leading to digitized operations and improved infrastructure, including digital weighing machines and solar coffee drying chambers.
Prompt payment has motivated farmers to increase production, with rewards from coffee brokers for quality beans. Murang’a County Executive Committee member for Agriculture and Cooperatives, Kimani Mugo, praised Gatagua as a model for cooperative management. The county government is collaborating with local societies to improve production quality and quantity.
“In the first quarter of 2024/2025, Gatagua registered an impressive payment after entering the export market,” Mugo told KNA.
