When you think of coffee production, Togo may not be the first country that comes to mind, but coffee is an important commodity to the West African country, and represents 10% of their total exports.
So it’s a matter of concern that the 2020/21 season saw another drop in production, as the official numbers came in at 2,400 tonnes vs 2,500 tonnes last year. This was a statement from the Secretary-General Enselme Gouthon for the Coordination Committee for Cocoa and Coffee (CCFCC).
Robusta is almost exclusively grown in the country, which has a similar taste profile to the coffee grown in Ghana, its neighbour. Most of the production takes place in the Plateau region, which is on the same equatorial plane as Ghana.
According to the ICO export statistics, Togo exported 30,614 bags of coffee from Dec 2020 to Nov 2021, a significant drop from the previous year’s 39,452. Traditionally, Togo’s coffee is purchased by the EU, notably France and Belgium.
Coffee production in Togo started in the 1920s during the colonial era, but has traditionally struggled with many of the same issues of other West African countries, namely ageing trees, land tenure rights, and smallholder farmers with limited access to education and resources, as well as changing weather patterns.
