About This Coffee
Murarandia Factory was founded in 1997 and is run by New Murarandia Farmers Cooperative Society (FCS). Over 650 members deliver cherry to the station. New Murarandia FCS also runs the well-known Gatuya Factory, also located in Muranga.
With help from Sucafina/Kahawa Bora, Murandia provides training to farmers in improved pruning, cultivation and harvesting methods. These measures help farmers optimize production for quality and productivity.
Cultivation
Farmers delivering to Murarandia cultivate SL28, SL34, Ruiru 11 and Batian in small coffee gardens that are, on average, smaller than 1 hectares. Coffee is usually planted alongside other food and fodder crops.
The FCS makes every effort to ensure that coffee is cultivated with a serious eye to sustainability and Good Agricultural Practices, from fertilization to pruning methods.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
Smallholders selectively handpick only ripe cherry and deliver it to Murarandia Factory. At intake, the Cherry Clerk oversees meticulous visual sorting and floating, accepting only dense, ripe cherry.
After intake, cherry is pulped and fermented for approximately 12 to 24 hours. Following fermentation, coffee is washed clean water and soaked for 12 hours. Then, parchment is laid to dry on raised beds. Workers rake parchment frequently to ensure even drying. They cover drying parchment during the hottest time of day, to maintain slow, even drying and at night, to shelter parchment from moisture. It takes approximately 14 to 18 days for parchment to dry.
About Murang’a
Murang’a lies just south of Nyeri and backs onto the temperate slopes of the Aberdare Mountain range on its western borders. Fertile red volcanic soil provides plenty of nutrients for growing trees while warm daytime and cooler nighttime temperatures create the best environment for beans to develop slowly and amass as much sugar as possible.
Farms in the county tend to be small, and farmers cultivate coffee on small plots alongside other food crops.
AA Grade
Kenyan coffees are classified by size. AA beans are the largest size. AA grade coffees are those that are 17/18 screen size, meaning that they are larger than 7.2 millimeters.
Coffee in Kenya
Though coffee growing had a relatively late start in Kenya, the industry has gained and maintained a impressive reputation. Since the start of production, Kenyan coffee has been recognized for its high-quality, meticulous preparation and exquisite flavors. Our in-country sister company, Sucafina Kenya, works with farmers across the country to ensure these exceptional coffees gain the accolades they deserve.
Today, more than 600,000 smallholders farming fewer than 5 acres compose 99% of the coffee farming population of Kenya. Their farms cover more than 75% of total coffee growing land and produce nearly 70% of the country’s coffee. These farmers are organized into hundreds of Farmer Cooperative Societies (FCS), all of which operate at least one factory. The remainder of annual production is grown and processed by small, medium and large land estates. Most of the larger estates have their own washing stations.
Most Kenyan coffees are fully washed and dried on raised beds. The country still upholds its reputation for high quality and attention to detail at its many washing stations. The best factories employ stringent sorting practices at cherry intake, and many of them have had the same management staff in place for years.