[UAH] Banyankore Kweterana breaks into EU coffee market

Banyankore Kweterana breaks into EU coffee market

In Summary

After years in limbo, western Uganda's biggest coop satisfies standards to export coffee to EU .

Banyankore Kweterana Cooperative Union (BKCU) has started exporting coffee to the European Union (EU) after satisfying the requirements for Fair Trade certification, which will see smallholder farmers and groups earn premium for their produce.

The general manager, Nelson Nuwahebwa, revealed that the union had exported 320 bags, amounting to 19 tonnes, to Belgium worth $51,840 (Shs 134m).
"This will benefit farmers, especially members of primary societies who make up the union," he says. "After the sale of coffee through the fair trade system, farmers get a premium from the union, which we call second payment thus making farmers earn more."

Better bargain
After hulling, farmers are encouraged to sell their clean coffee to the union to benefit from this payment. The union then grades the coffee into different categories for export as well as other buyers, both local and international.
Moses Bishweko, chairman of Kyabandara Growers Cooperative Society in Sheema District, confirms that selling coffee collectively gives the farmers better bargaining power on how much they should be paid.

"We have been able to bargain for better prices through our cooperative societies. This time round we bargain with the union which is offering better prices," he says.
Also, the coop society sells coffee husks back to the farmers and the revenue accrued is used in the operations like transportation of coffee to Mbarara for grading and subsequent sale.

Share ideas
The farmers have also benefitted from trainings in good agricultural practices, which have raised the quality of coffee produced, sharing of information and regular meetings where they share ideas.

Currently, the society is able to raise 10 tons from 800kg in 2009. BKCU has several buying centres in the different districts; mainly Ndija in Mbarara, Bwongyera in Ntungamo, Ruhinda in Mitooma, Ibanda in Ibanda, Kabwohe in Sheema, and soon will add Bushenyi in Bushenyi district.
Most of the coffee produced in the Ankole region is Robusta but there is also some Arabica coffee grown on a smaller scale.

Value addition
Though the Banyankore Kweterana union buys and then grades coffee for export on as-is basis, there is the intention to diversify into value addition.

"We are looking into processing instant coffee, roasting and packaging before sending it to the market," Nuwahebwa says. "By 2015, we intend to have laboratory cupping equipment, a roaster, a grinder and grading equipment."
While it is an uphill task to restore the market share that cooperative societies like Banyankore Kweterena had in the 1980s and 1990s, with innovation, new skills and appropriate marketing strategies, the coops will most likely make an impact on coffee trade in Uganda.

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