Kanyovu Cooperative

Kigoma, Tanzania

Bright Aroma ~ Citrus Notes ~ Balanced Finish


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Kanyovu Cooperative, Kigoma, Tanzania Well into the interior of Eastern Africa lies a deep and long lake called Lake Tanganyika. This amazing lake serves to connect the four countries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, and Tanzania. It is in Tanzania, that a small reserve called The Gombe is home to Jane Goodall’s often studied colonies of Chimpanzees.

Through the years data gathered at the Gombe has played a major role in scientific advancements, as well as providing a natural sanctuary for the endangered Chimpanzees. Surrounding the Gombe is a chain of small villages linked by their common source of income: coffee.

These smallholder coffee farms have, in the past, been primarily focused on producing commodity grade coffees that were sold at the local auction for a very low price. This low income led to unsustainable growing practices as well as an unsustainable income for the farmers and communities.

Kanyovu Cooperative, Kigoma, Tanzania This situation led the farmers to start considering alternative crops that would have had negative effects on the ecosystem and ultimately could have spelled disaster for the Gombe Reserve.

This situation prompted action within the Specialty Coffee sector. Led by leadership at Sustainable Harvest, quality control and farming practice improvement were achieved through training and collaboration with coffee experts from the USA as well as agronomists from Brazil.

Kanyovu Cooperative, Kigoma, Tanzania Within a short time of only 4 years, coffees from the Kanyovu Cooperative went from commodity grade to taking first place at the Taste of Harvest competition in Tanzania. Now, due to the high quality of their coffee members of the Kanyovu Cooperative have received the highest price paid to any coffee farmers in Tanzania. This quality based premium has allowed farmers to work more closely with the Jane Goodall Institute on re-forestation projects and will allow them opportunities for social and economic improvements in the future.