About This Coffee
Located in Kisawai, Nasianda Factory stands as a testament to resilience and transformation. Nasianda Cooperative was originally established in 1973 as a land-buying cooperative, whereby farmers pool their resources to purchase tracts of land they would otherwise be unable to access. Nasianda evolved into a Farmer Cooperative Society (FCS) in 1980.
Managed by a dedicated nine-member board and three supervisory members, Nasianda Factory produces exceptional coffee with a focus on quality and sustainability. The high altitudes and fertile soils of Transzoia County contribute to the coffee’s unique flavor profile and bright acidity.
Nasianda Factory employs traditional wet processing methods, fermenting coffee for 12 to 24 hours and drying parchment on raised beds for up to 14 days. This careful processing ensures the consistency and high quality that Kenya is known for.
Cultivation
Farmers in the Nasianda cooperative cultivate coffee at elevations of 1,700 to 1,800 meters above sea level. Coffee farms are small, averaging 400 trees, and will usually occupy a portion of the ‘shamba’ (as small farms are known in Kenya) alongside shade and fruit trees, subsistence crops and fodder for lifestock. Most farms grow the varieties typical of Kenya, such as SL28, SL34, K7, Batian and Ruiru 11. Nasianda FCS emphasizes sustainable farming practices, supported by the region’s favorable climatic conditions and rich volcanic soils. This commitment to careful cultivation ensures the coffee’s bright acidity and complex flavor profiles.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
Farmers handpick ripe cherries and deliver them to Nasianda Factory for processing. After careful sorting at the factor to separate ripe cherries from underripe and damaged fruit, coffee is pulped into tanks. Coffee will then be fermented for 12 to 24 hours, followed by washing through grading channels using clean water and drying on raised beds. During the the 14-day drying period, coffee will be regularly raked and covered during the hottest times of the day to ensure even drying and humidity levels.
Nasianda’s commitment to quality and its strong cooperative structure make it a reliable producer of premium coffee.
About SL28 & SL34
SL28 and SL34 were two of the cultivars released by Scott Agricultural Laboratories (SAL) during the height of SAL’s research in Kenya in the 1930s and 1940s. They soon became the cultivars of choice for most growers thanks to their deep root structure that allows them to maximize scarce water resources and flourish even without irrigation. SL varieties also had higher yields than the French Bourbon rootstock that they replaced and were known to be somewhat more disease resistant.
About Batian
Developed by Kenya's Coffee Research Institute in 2010, Batian is named after the highest peak on Mt. Kenya and is resistant to both coffee berry disease (CBD) and coffee leaf rust (CLR). The variety has the added benefit of early maturity – cropping after only two years. Some challenges (such as vegetative structure) have prevented it from becoming widespread so far, but its popularity is certainly growing.
About Ruiru 11
Ruiru 11, a hybrid of Catimor and SL cultivars, is both Coffee Berry Disease (CBD) and Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR) resistant. Plus, it can be planted at a much higher density than the SL varieties, making optimal use of small plots of land.
Ruiru 11 has slowly ‘taken root’ across most of Kenya’s coffee growing landscape. The only issues were that with a shallower root structure, many farmers found the plant less hardy in drought conditions, and the trees required a more intense feeding program. Over time, farmers have found that by grafting Ruiru-11 to SL varieties they could take advantage of SL trees’ expansive root system and still reap the increased yields and higher immunity to disease of Ruiru-11.
Due to the grafted Ruiru-11’s growing popularity, most farms in Kenya today, both big and small, have a mixture of Ruiru-11 and SL varieties. As SL trees age, many farmers are opting to turn more towards Ruiru-11 (or the grafting solution) thanks to its ease of use and higher resistance to diseases.
Source: https://varieties.worldcoffeeresearch.org/varieties/ruiru-11 & https://sucafina.com/na/news/think-you-know-kenya-coffee-varieties-think-again
About K7
K7 is found mostly in Kenya and Tanzania and is known for its resistance to Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR) and Coffee Berry Disease (CBD). The variety also has high yields and good cup potential at high altitudes. The plant is recognizable by its branch’s widespread.
K7 was selected from seedlings on Legetet Estate in Muhorohi, an estate owned by a man named R.H. Walker. In Kenya, K7 is less common in high-altitude areas, but it remains a popular choice in some lower-altitude regions due to its slight resistance to CLR.
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.