My formula of reaping more from coffee

John Seroney with his helpers harvest coffee in his farm in Lelgot Coffee Estate, Kericho. The farmer processes the coffee and sales for the local and export market. PHOTO | ELIZABETH OJINA | NMG 

What you need to know:

  • Coffee leaf is severe on crop grown at lower altitudes.
  • How a farmer manages his coffee plantation translates to the final aroma of the beverages. 
  • During the pulping process, a lot of water is needed to accelerate the removal of the red coat.
  • The coffee leaf disease is severe on coffee grown at lower altitudes of 1,500m and below where temperatures permit greater infection during wet season.

The road to Fort Ternan is smooth until one takes a left turn at the junction leading to Lelgot Coffee Estate in West Kipkelion, Kericho County.

The area hosts vast coffee and sugarcane plantations.

We find John Seroney and his two workers at the coffee farm picking berries. They are doing the final harvest.

“Almost all the trees are at the flowering stage, however, some had late maturing berries thus we can still harvest them,” says Seroney.

The farm occupies eight acres, which host 8,000 coffee trees of the Ruiru 11, SL34, K7 and Batian varieties. He also has a coffee tree nursery with certified seedlings that he sells at Sh40.

Seroney inherited the farm from his father, Stephen Cheruiyot in 2015 and turned it around.

“My father ran the business since 1978. I saw how his efforts paid to support the family. It is three years since I took over and I cannot regret,” says the 36-year-old, noting he introduced the three hybrid coffee varieties, which took the place of the existing 2895 K7 coffee trees that were planted in 1978.

And of much significance is that he now adds value on the produce, besides selling through the auction in Nairobi like other farmers.

According to him, how a farmer manages his coffee plantation translates to the final aroma of the beverages. 

“Coffee is a very sensitive plant therefore it is important to pick healthy planting materials and manage it well,” says the farmer, who quit his banking career to become a fulltime coffee farmer.

Usually, the first harvesting season begins in April to July, but the main harvesting peaks between September and December. On average, he harvests 8kg of coffee berries per bush.

“The production of Batian and Ruiru 11 varieties is constant while SL 34 provides premium grade AA and AP with bigger coffee beans,” he says.

“We pick the red berries because unripe ones create not only defects on the value addition machine but also compromise the quality of the coffee.”

The value addition process starts after picking the berries. They are then sorted to remove those that are over-ripen and those that are still green.

During the pulping process, a lot of water is needed to accelerate the removal of the red coat.

HARSH CLIMATIC CONDITIONS

The product is then fed into different fermentation shed for three days before it is sun-dried on racks. It will be fully dried after 7 to 14 days and stored.

Once he is done with the process, he checks the moisture content which should range from 11 to 12 per cent and divides the produce into two. The bigger batch is ferried to Nairobi for the export market.

“For the smaller batch (50kg), he takes it to Kipkelion Coffee Mill for further processing. At the mill, the coffee husks are removed and categorised into AA, AB, C, PB, MH, ML and UG,” says the farmer, adding the coffee is roasted, packed and branded for sale at his Lelgot Coffee House in Nairobi.

On average, the farm exports about 300 50kg bags of coffee a season. Currently, the AA coffee costs $300 (Sh30,000) per 50kg bag.

“Initially, I used to sale through a co-operative society. The process was long at the same time the quality got compromised because they didn’t take care of the coffee.”

Seroney, who is also the Lelgot Coffee House managing director, says he has partnered with a friend on the project.

He packs his coffee in 100g, 250g and 500g pack sold at Sh100, Sh250 and Sh500 respectively, branded as African Gold Coffee.

He isolates the fluctuating prices in the international market as a major challenge to the coffee venture. 

Coffee diseases and harsh climatic condition such as drought have also resulted in sharp drop in the production of the coffee berries.

“During the drought that hit the country last year, we had a drop in coffee production. We haven’t seen severe attack of pest and diseases, except a few case of leaves affected by leaf rust,” he says.

Maseno University Head of Department of Agriculture, Prof Matthews Dida, says coffee leaf disease has yellow to orange powdery blotches appearance on the underside of the leaf.

“The coffee leaf disease is severe on coffee grown at lower altitudes of 1,500m and below where temperatures permit greater infection during wet season,” says Prof Dida.

He says the economic impact of coffee rust occurs not only through reduction of both quantity and quality of yield but also through the need to undertake expensive control measures on the disease.

In five years’ time, the farmer who has employed 15 workers, plans to increase his coffee plantation to 20 acres, to establish warehouse in Nairobi.