Coffee is one of the oldest crop since its discovery back in the 9th century by the Ethiopian goatherd . Since then, coffee has evolved and has been associated with great movements, discussions until recently being the 2nd most traded commodity after petroleum.
Coffee’s birthday falls on the 1st day of October each year. In 2017, Connect coffee roasters joined the world at large & other coffee enthusiasts to celebrate International coffee day . This day coincided with Connect coffee company 1st anniversary since its establishment as a social enterprise with the main objective to support small scale coffee farmers in Kenya improve production in terms of quality & quantity.
Connect coffee company celebrated the day with fun by organizing a full day event at Connect coffee roasters.
Morning session : “Seed to cup exhibition “
Afternoon session : Workshop :
Title : Why small scale farmers are giving up coffee farming in Kenya ?
Panelists – in- attendance included : Partner farmer, Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture, Permaculture Research Institute (PRI ), Coffee Research Institute ( CRI ) & Tropical Farm management.
It was unanimously agreed that small scale farmers face deep challenges such as inefficiency in farm management, insufficient working capital to purchase inputs and lack of access to fair market. Partners proposed collaboration between key stakeholders in the coffee value chain that is inclusive from seed to cup.
The climax of the event was witnessed during the partnership signing between Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture & Connect coffee company ltd. Syngenta foundation will offer financial support in the ” seed to cup ” project instrumental in scaling out from 1 ( one ) partner farmer to 6 ( six ) farmers in Kenya, Kiambu county.
Looking forwad to an exciting International coffee day come 2018.
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