Kenya Mercy

We are delighted to welcome this exceptional washed lot from female micro-entrepreneur, Nyokabi Mungai to our offer list. Mercy comes to us from Kiambu County, an area that is well known for specialty coffee production thanks to the highly productive slopes of the Aberdare mouthing ranges. Kiambu is also famous for dairy production and some of the land of Mercy Estate is used to keep dairy cows. Not only does this help supplement Nyokabi's income, she is able to utilise cow manure instead of agro chemicals to fertilise her coffee trees. Only the ripest coffee cherries are handpicked, sorted, pulped and soaked in tanks before being dried on raised beds - this incredibly attentive post harvest processing produces a cup that is bursting with character! We find juicy citrus notes and a honey sweetness that is suited to filter brew methods without milk.
 
Kenya is one of our most favoured coffee origins being the place responsible for the establishment of North Star. Whilst the coffee is amongst the best in the world, it can often be a frustrating supply chain to source from with a lack of transparency and understanding of exactly what impact we are having due to the complex auction system that has been in place there since independence. This system makes it very difficult for Kenyan companies to participate in the sale of their country’s coffee, prioritising established British and foreign export businesses, sadly serving the interest of the buyer and not of the producer.

We first met Vava Angwenyi in 2017 in Budapest where she was speaking at the Re:co Symposium about gender equity in the supply chain. Her views matched with ours when it came to evaluating the current state of the global coffee industry and we wanted to hear more about her company, a Kenyan enterprise focused on showcasing the value of Kenyan coffee to Kenyan coffee farmers. We were hosted by her during our visit to Kenya in February 2019 and learnt more about an initiative called Gente del Futuro which she has co-founded.

In many producing countries, the average age of coffee farmers is increasing. Youth are not motivated to stay in coffee, they face lack of ownership of land, coffee trees and access to training and finance and therefore leave the rural areas looking for employment in towns. Continuation of coffee production by the “next generation” is therefore at stake, and poses a great risk for the coffee sector as a whole. GDF is an organisation that currently works with smallholder producers in Kenya, Tanzania and Colombia to showcase the potential life-changing impact of the industry to producers who are currently marginalised and denied access to the consumer end of the supply chain. In supporting this organisation, we are empowering young people through practical and technical training to show them coffee is a profession that can change their future for the better, not the worse.
 
By buying this bag of coffee, you are contributing to scholarships and training programs for hundreds of smallholder coffee producers so they are able to better understand the value of what they are growing. Asante Sana!

Once you have placed your order, you will receive an email to confirm it is being processed and then another one to let you know when it has been dispatched. We are currently operating with 3 working day lead time to process your order once you have placed it. 

Royal Mail 2nd class tracked postage is included for orders over £25. Orders under £25 will add £4.10 for 2nd class tracked postage. Alternatively, you have the option to include 1st class tracked postage for £5.

Local pickups take place from the Roastery on Tong Road. Please note our shutter doors will be down for security and temperature reasons but we are always in Monday-Friday between 9 and 5pm – just ring the doorbell on arrival

If you order 1-2 x 250g bags of coffee, they will be sent in a letterbox friendly package so that you do not need to be in to take receipt of your coffee.

Our 250g bags are 100% home compostable including the valve, seal and sticker! They will degrade in 6 months in a well managed home compost.

Our 1kg bags are currently in LDPE plastic - some councils will recycle this for you, if you are unsure simply take it to your local supermarket with your other plastic packaging.