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Zambia's Emerging Coffee Industry

Among the countries worldwide that produce Arabica coffee beans, Zambia in Central Africa plays a very small role, exporting roughly 6,000 tons a year for total revenue of about $85 million. Even so, the country is working hard to raise production to 20,000 tons within the next decade, and it hopes to win the attention of coffee buyers around the world.

Zambia's land area is roughly the size of Texas, or of the United Kingdom and France combined. With a total population of about 11.5 million, it sits on the Central African plateau and has a mainly tropical highland climate, with most of the country above 4,000 feet and some coffee-growing regions at even higher elevations.

Zambia began commercial coffee cultivation in 1978 and recorded its first exports in 1985. Because coffee growing succeeded, and because the government hoped to earn more national income from bean exports, the country actively sought foreign assistance to improve the conditions for commercial coffee farming.

With vast land and abundant water, Zambia's coffee regions enjoy good irrigation, which keeps production costs relatively low and offsets the country's main geographic disadvantage -- being landlocked. Zambia produces washed mild Arabica whose quality can be compared with neighboring Kenya, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. Most of the varieties grown are Bourbon, with round beans, a bluish-green color, high density, and a light covering of silver skin. Zambian coffee has an acidic taste, but it also has a round, thick, viscous mouthfeel and excellent flavor.

This year, the total area under coffee in Zambia reached 5,000 acres. Small-scale farms average around 200 acres, family-operated farms range between 20 and 550 acres, and large commercial plantations mostly run between 300 and 1,300 acres.

Coffee cultivation fits Zambia's general commercial farming system very well. Growers combine coffee with other farm operations such as beef cattle, dairy, flowers, and vegetables. Apart from partial income from copper mines and other mineral exports, Zambia's main revenue comes from agricultural exports. The income earned from coffee is invested in processing equipment and in building demand for the country's other agricultural products.

Zambia has a large unemployed population, and coffee production provides many stable, long-term jobs. These positions are typically assigned by farm owners or managers, with different tasks distributed according to the season, which offers relief to Zambia's generally poor rural population.

Most arable land in Zambia is allocated to its citizens, with only a small portion granted to commercially operated foreign companies. This differs significantly from other neighboring coffee-producing countries. And because Zambia's population is not very large, it does not face the same problems of insufficient land and water allocation that other countries do.

In fact, the Zambian government encourages converting existing cultivated land to commercial use, applying a 99-year land lease policy rather than selling land outright.

Zambia cultivates only Arabica varieties, mostly traditional Bourbon. All the beans are processed by the washed method, and their quality can be compared with Kenyan coffee. The combination of Zambia's varieties and the altitude of its southern growing regions produces beans with a mild yet rich flavor -- a coffee type that is easy for the general public to appreciate.

Because Zambia started coffee cultivation relatively late, it has been able to apply the latest technologies and environmental thinking to the industry from the outset, including precise water use, effective recycling of coffee pulp into compost, biological pest control, and ecological balance. At the same time, the industry is working to turn a traditionally labor-intensive business into a mutually beneficial relationship with Zambia's rural population.

Under Zambian law, the coffee industry is led primarily by the Zambia Coffee Board, which delegates most operational mechanisms to the Zambia Coffee Growers Association (ZCGA), formed jointly by coffee farmers.

The association was established in 1987 and currently has 70 large-scale farms and 530 small-scale farms as members. All coffee farmers are members. Its founding goal is to look after members' interests, mainly by providing services in record-keeping, coffee business development, training, technical support, quality control, and marketing.

With Zambian coffee exports reaching 6,500 tons in 2003, the Zambia Coffee Growers Association planned to activate a dry milling facility with a 1.5-ton capacity. Funded by the European Union, the facility would be built in Zambia's capital, Lusaka, which is also the association's headquarters and sits centrally among the country's coffee regions.

The facility was officially inaugurated by the Zambian President in April of this year, and it provides dry milling services for small-scale farms within the association. Small-scale farmers cannot afford their own dry milling equipment, and they can also ask large farms to handle dry milling and other post-processing for their coffee.

In his inauguration speech, Zambian President Mwanawasa said the government's policy is to ensure that small-scale coffee farmers receive substantial cash incentives for their beans and technical support. "To encourage small-scale coffee farms, we will adopt an 'outgrower' mechanism as our business strategy" -- that is, smallholder farmers supply coffee cherries as raw material while government-operated mills handle post-processing, a compromise division of labor between public and private.

In practice, this mechanism is not yet working well. The total amount of coffee produced for export through the scheme currently reaches only 9 tons, mainly because of a lack of inputs and irrigation facilities. Without good irrigation, coffee cannot grow successfully or reach sufficient yields in Zambia. The country's banks are also not actively helping small-scale coffee farms that urgently need working capital. On top of that, an old idea is deeply rooted in Zambia: borrowing is considered a "gift" that does not need to be repaid.

The Zambia Coffee Board is the body responsible for running this mechanism. It has decided to transfer the mechanism to the Zambia Coffee Growers Association to manage. The association now plans to promote the outgrower concept among the large corporate plantations in its membership, giving indirect, compromise assistance to their smallholder allies. Some large enterprises are already willing to provide doorstep extension services, inputs, irrigation facilities, and centrally managed post-processing facilities to keep the outgrower program going.

Although international coffee futures prices are currently low, several top-grade Zambian coffees such as AAA and AA can still fetch good prices, especially when sold into Japan's specialty market, where they command the best prices at roughly $1,900 per ton.

About 94% of Zambian coffee beans are sold to markets in Western Europe and Scandinavia. In recent years, sales to the Japanese market have accounted for only 5% of total exports, while 1% flows to the US market through Western European re-exports. The Zambia Coffee Growers Association's future goal is to raise the share going to Japan to 10% of total exports, and it also hopes for direct import-export cooperation with the US market.

In Zambia, coffee export trade is an emerging industry with high development potential and the ability to earn considerable foreign exchange, so there is room for vigorous growth ahead. Coffee beans, together with tourism and other agricultural products, have already helped Zambia move away from an economy overly dependent on copper exports.

Even so, the country still lacks capital investment and a suitable long-term marketing plan. Zambia must continue to rely on assistance from organizations such as the European Union to promote its coffee to the world market.

Setting the smallholder plans aside, the country also intends to keep expanding large-scale farms. However, five large farms already stopped coffee production in the previous season because of a lack of the financial assistance needed for their expansion plans.

Among existing members, most barely make a living by exporting the coffee they grow. Due to a lack of outside assistance and their financial disadvantages, they must rely on that meager income to keep cultivating limited coffee, unable to expand or update equipment. What Zambia needs most right now is long-term financial support -- ideally stable funding for at least 10 years -- to effectively improve the country's growing conditions and coffee quality.

Joseph Taguma, Senior General Manager of the Zambia Coffee Growers Association, said: "The central dry milling facility helps improve the average quality of our coffee and offers another option -- blending beans with similar flavors to reach a more stable standard. This process will be conducted under strict on-site supervision. We have also built a warehouse to store chemical inputs and fertilizers for members. The association is also responsible for quality control and for mission-driven export services. Export sales and shipping are handled by members, so buyers get a double benefit in quality and service. Before export, beans are tested by professional tasters, and after each tasting the opinions are compiled and given back to farmers so they can aim for better quality in the future. We have also formed a permanent professional team to advise members on cultivation, post-processing, and export operations."

On the marketing side, the Zambia Coffee Growers Association has developed a blended premium trademark called "Zambica," produced jointly by a few association-approved farms. The purpose is twofold: to give small-scale farms a chance to promote their products into the specialty coffee market, and to provide a stable supply of high-quality beans.

A small number of plantations also market their own brands into the specialty market, though all shipments go through the association. These plantation beans have very distinctive regional flavor and have received good international reviews. As long as the beans pass the association's strict review standards, they can carry the association's quality certification seal. All coffee exported from Zambia must obtain this seal, so buyers can be sure they are getting superior, impeccable quality.

In general, Zambian coffee grading includes AA, AA/AB, AB, PB, and other smaller bean grades, but it can also be adjusted to match an individual buyer's quality and size requirements.

Consistently performing plantations include Isanya Estates, in Zambia's Northern Province of Abercorn (now Mbala) near the highlands on the southern Tanzanian border; Mpongwe Estates, in the Luanshya area of Copperbelt Province; Mutuwila Estates, in Central Province; Chamba Valley Estates, in the highland area of Lusaka Province; Munali Coffee Estates, in Southern Province, named after the nearby hills it borders and discovered by David Livingstone; and Terranova Estates, in the Mazabuka highland area of Southern Province.

Although Zambia is landlocked, it is not transport-isolated. The country has multiple international and regional air routes, and its rail and road systems are well developed. Imports and exports can move through Durban Port in South Africa on the Indian Ocean, the Maputo and Beira ports in Mozambique, and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. A route to the Atlantic via Namibia's Walvis Bay is about to open, but for now all coffee bound for the Atlantic is consolidated at Durban Port.

On environmental conservation, most plantations include natural forest reserves, with enough woodland and grassland to give local wildlife, birds, and insects safe habitat. The country's rivers and dams support abundant aquatic life. Ordinary tourists in Zambia can sometimes even spot traces of leopards, lynxes, hyenas, and jackals.

Coffee trees themselves give good shelter to creatures such as antelopes and hares. Many coffee farmers grow up and live in these surroundings and want to preserve them so that future generations can enjoy the same rich, distinctive natural environment.

At the typical Chamba Valley Estates, at an altitude of 1,300 meters, the plantation grows Bourbon variety coffee trees, irrigating the plots with spray equipment while interplanting original forest trees. All beans are washed processed on the estate and naturally sun-dried. Chamba Valley Estates' coffee is currently the leading brand of Zambian coffee.

Tigg Siddle, Vice Chairman of the Zambia Coffee Growers Association, said in a recent exclusive interview that the association plans to expand Zambia's total production to reach world-class scale. "At present our annual production is only 6,500 tons, which is really minimal influence in the world coffee market. Our goal is to raise total production to 20,000 tons within 10 years, but at this stage long-term financing is the main bottleneck we face." The association previously received funding for its development plans from the European Union's Enterprise Development Fund (EDF), but that program is about to expire.

To make Zambian coffee better known, the Zambia Coffee Growers Association plans to hold a roaster origin tour during May-June of next year. According to the association: "Participants only need to cover round-trip airfare; all expenses here are covered by us."

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FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Zambia's washed mild Arabica is frequently compared with Kenyan coffee, so if that clean, fruit-forward washed profile is what you are after, FrontStreet's Kenya Little Tomato is a natural place to start. It is one of the best-known examples of the washed method, and Kenya is especially skilled at double washed processing: the beans pass through the washing step twice, with flotation, repeated rinsing and soaking, and drying and hulling between stages. All that rinsing and soaking draws out a concentrated juice-like quality, so the cup carries rich aromas of cherry tomato, dark plum, snow pear, black plum, and yellow sugar, with a sweet-sour, juicy mouthfeel.

For a washed Ethiopian counterpoint, FrontStreet's Yirgacheffe Gedeb cooperative coffee is a good counterpart to the washed clarity described above. The cooperative's washed process brings out jasmine florals and bright citrus acidity to the fullest, and after a medium-light roast the coffee shows green tea and honey notes. It brews well as pour-over, cold brew, or espresso.

If you want the classic island-expression of washed Typica, FrontStreet also carries Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1. Wet processing was developed partly for island climates with shorter sunshine hours, since removing the skin, pulp, and mucilage before drying shortens drying time and yields bright, low-defect beans -- the same reasoning behind the clean, aromatic Blue Mountain cup, with hazelnut, cream, chocolate, and caramel notes and a balance in which no single taste dominates.