According to a report by the Nairobi Coffee Exchange, sales at Kenya’s coffee auction rose to $210.7 million in the last 11 months of the marketing cycle ending in September. This is a huge increase from the $129.8 million in the same period last year.
The growth in revenue is due to a combination of higher volumes and better prices. At a time when some other African countries are struggling with production, Keyna managed to beat the market by increasing volumes by an impressive 53% to 575,543 60KG bags, compared to 377,543 bags the previous year, while prices had increased by an average of 6.6%.
The report was not all good news, however, as concerns were raised about difficulties in sourcing fertiliser in the current year, which are expected to affect next year’s yields.
The report estimated that coffee production could fall to 700,000 60kg bags, a decline of about 10%. However, other countries are facing similar problems, so the impact of lower volumes could be offset by higher prices, provided demand remains robust.
Photo source: Bex Walton
