Uganda lies in the heart of East Africa on the shores of Lake Victoria, straddles the equator and is the source of the Nile. Sir Winston Churchill first described Uganda as the ‘Pearl of Africa’ , while admiring its “magnificent variety of form and colour, profusion of brilliant life and its vast scale”. Benefiting from a bi-modal rainfall season and high altitudes, the country has a pleasant climate all year round and is lush with greenery. The mountain ranges to the east and west are home to Uganda’s Arabica farmers. The government of Uganda is promoting coffee production as a key driver for rural development.

Masereka Obed is the lead farmer and one of the elders responsible for their group. He is 54 years old and lives with his wife and 2 youngest children. His farm is nestled into the mountains about 1200masl however works higher up close to the buying centre to co-ordinate the collection of coffee from other farmers in the region.

The farmers harvest their coffee by hand, carefully selecting the ripe cherries. The cherries are then pre-sorted before being floated in a tank of water. The cherries which float are removed, leaving only the best cherries. These cherries are then sun-dried on raised tables inside purpose built poly-tunnels. Farmers carefully turn the cherries throughout the day ensuring uniform drying. Once dried to the required moisture content, the coffee is stored and processed the wet mill in Kisinga Town. After processing, the coffee beans then undergo a final removing any black beans or defects from the coffee.

The coffee is then bagged and transported to a new dry mill in Namanve on the outskirts of Kampala. Here it is prepared for export through Mombasa. Many farmers choose to sell the fresh cherries after they have been sorted and floated, often with the assistance of the field team based out of Kisinga. This enables farmers to access quick payment for coffee and takes away the risk of processing coffee at their farm, many of whom are not well equipped to dry coffee. The cherries are delivered to the Wet mill in Kisinga Town where a team of trained workers are able to carry out the whole process to a high standard.