Boost as coffee society acquires Sh8m equipment

Coffee equipment at Iyego farmers cooperative society in Murang'a. [Boniface Gikandi, Standard]

A coffee society in Murang'a has increased its fortunes through the acquisition of systems for ecopulping, roasting and packaging.

Iyego Society in Kangema Constituency has acquired the state of the art equipment through a partnership with Saving Water Initiative Tropical Farm Management.

Chairman of the society Njuguna Karatu said the Sh8 million equipment has helped the organisation to start packing their Iyego Coffee Premium trading at Sh1,000 per kilogramme. A gram of coffee is trading at a shilling.

The ecopulping system uses very little water in processing coffee unlike the conventional one used by many of the societies, said Njuguna when leaders led by Kangema MP Peter Kihungi and Deputy Governor Stephen Munania toured the factory.

The MP said the upgrading of the factory status should be a lesson to others interested in helping the farmers access better returns.

"I challenge the international dealers running coffee shops in Kenya like Dormans to buy locally roasted coffee instead of importing. In Kenya there is enough commodity for consumption and export," said Kihungi.

Commissioning the project, Murang'a Deputy Governor Stephen Munania said the government is working on a programme that will help in increasing coffee production.

Munania said the county government has rolled out a programme jointly with Murang'a Farmers Cooperative Union to involve the youth in coffee farming.

"Using the youth will help in increasing production of the commodity thus more returns from the local and the international market," said the deputy governor accompanied by County Trade and Industrialisation Executive Kimani Mugo.

Iyego society with 12 factories is among the few societies in Murang'a that in the 1990s survived the liberation wave that led to a split.