NCE chief executive Daniel Mbithi. FILE PHOTO | NMG
The price of Kenyan coffee rebounded by 18 percent this week
after months of a downward trend as quality offered for sale improved at
the auction.
A Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE) market
report indicates that a 50-kilogramme bag of coffee fetched Sh10,400 on
Tuesday up from Sh8,800 average in the previous sale. The trading also
saw Kenya’s premium coffee grade AA gain this week to hit Sh14,200 from
Sh13,200 that was recorded previously for a 50-kg bag.
“The
increase in price has been occasioned by improved quality at the
auction this week,” said NCE chief executive Daniel Mbithi.
The coffee performed well despite the international prices remaining low for the fifth month in a row now.
The
price of coffee in the world market has been on a decline since last
November when it hit a low of 113 cents a pound before sliding further
this week to 93 cents per pound.
Kenya has one of the
best coffee in the world. It is highly sought by roasters for blending
with other low quality from other regions.
However,
Kenya’s production has significantly dropped compared to its peers in
the region with Uganda, which was at par with the country in the
previous years, now widening the gap.
Since the early
1990s to 2010/11 crop year, the area under coffee has declined by 35
percent from 170,000 hectares to 109,795 hectares as farmers abandoned
the crop due to poor industry management.
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