7 problems facing coffee farming in Kenya

 In Kenya coffee is grown in at least seven of the eight provinces. The only region where coffee is not grown is the northeastern province because it is too dry for the crop. In Kenya, the main type of coffee grown is Arabika.small amount of Robusta coffee is grown in western Kenya but the output is insignificant.

Coffee: This is the chief exchange earner crop of Uganda but Kenya is the biggest producer in East Africa. There are two types of coffee;

9 USES OF COFFEE

Arabica coffee is mainly grown on the slopes of mountain Elgon, Rukungiri, Kabarole, Kabale, Aberdare ranges, Mt. Kenya, Kilimanjaro slopes, Mt. Usambara, and Mt. Meru near Arusha and Moshi.

Robusta coffee is mainly grown along the Lake Victoria basin covering districts like Mukono, Mityana, Masaka, and Rakai in Uganda. It's also grown in Bushenyi, Nebbi, Kapchorwa, Masindi, Hoima, Busia, and Fort Portal. In Tanzania, it's grown around Bukoba and in the southern highlands.

The following are Uses of coffee

  • Used as a beverage for drinking after processing.

  • Coffee husks are a good source of manure used to improve soil fertility.

  • Coffee husks and wood are used as fuel for cooking in rural areas.

  • Coffee husks are also used as litter in poultry shelters.

  • Coffee stems are used as building materials e.g. in mud houses.

  • Used as a herbal medicine especially in Buganda and Bunyoro.

  • Coffee is also used in the manufacture of gunpowder for making bullets

7 problems facing coffee farming in Kenya

The following are problems facing coffee farming in Kenya

  • Poor soils; in many areas where coffee is grown, the soil is exhausted and smallholders can not afford the fertilizers required to reinstate the soil back to the required fertility level. Coffee uses a lot of nutrients which need to be replenished regularly

  • Adverse weather condition; there are times when rainfall is unreliable and drought condition set in causing berries to ripen prematurely and falling off hence causing loss to farmers

  • Shortage of capital; farmers usually have a problem of capital to improve their farms and even improve farm infrastructure. Coffee farming requires heavy capital investment in terms of inputs and labor.

  • Shortage of labor; labor is sometimes in short supply especially during the harvesting period. This leads to some ripe berries becomes dry as they are not harvested in time. The dry blackberries carry lower prices since they are of lower quality

  • Prevalence of diseases;  there are three very harmful diseases that affect the coffee planting Kenya. These are coffee berry diseases, leaf rust, and armillaries mellea

  • Competition from other crops; because of many problems that coffee farmers are facing, some farmers have uprooted the coffee trees and have started horticultural farming

  • Mismanagement of co-operative societies; the coffee co-operative societies are frequently changing their leadership with some even closing down because of poor management.

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