Belgium has become Kenya’s top export market for coffee, toppling over America for the first time in a decade.
Belgium imported Kenyan coffee worth kes 6.5 billion in the year to June 2021. This was nearly double what it bought in the prior year, with the US emerging second having bought coffee worth kes 4 billion in the review period.
“While the top five countries remain the same for the two-season, it is important to note that Belgium improved from position three in the previous year to the top position in 2020/21,” the head of the Coffee Directorate Enosh Akuma as quoted by Business Daily.
For the last four years, the US has been holding at the top after toppling Germany in 2018, the position that Berlin had held for a decade.
Statistics from Coffee Directorate indicate Belgium bought 8.9 million kilogrammes of the produce up from six million kilos while the US bought 6.1 million kilos against nine million a year earlier.
Until 2017, Germany was the largest buyer of Kenyan coffee, however, its dominance was breached by America in 2018, which emerged top for the first time and held that position until last year.
The US took the top spot in 2018 after Kenya aggressively marketed its speciality coffee during the 2018 Specialty Coffee Association of America symposium in Seattle.
Kenya was given “portrait status” at the symposium, making it the main focal point of the exhibition, which is one of the largest single-market avenues for coffee producers to meet buyers and consumers of the beverage.
Germany emerged third in the review period having purchased 5.5 million kilos worth Sh3 billion.
Kenya exports most of its coffee as cleaned beans. It exports only five per cent as roasted coffee and therefore, misses out on the added value from selling roasted and packaged coffee.
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