MARCH 2022 DISCOVERY COFFEE
Zambia
Sweet, Orange, Marmalade
Producer: NCCL Kateshi
Farmed Area: 2,466 Ha
Region: Northern Province
Process: Specialty Natural
Screen Size: 15+
Altitude: 1,340 - 1,400 masl
Varietal: CAT-129, F6, Castillo
Certifications: UTZ and Rainforest Alliance
Average Rainfall: 1,100mm p.a
Harvest: May - September
The Producers
Kateshi coffee estate, as one of the first coffee estates in Zambia, was established in 1972 close to Kateshi village. Back then, its wet processing facilities represented the heart of coffee production in northern Zambia having been the central mill for all coffee produced in the region.
Sustainability is at the heart of Kateshi Estates operations and they strive for excellent community relations and protection of natural resources. Almost 600 ha of land are protected forest area with high conservation value.
Kateshi has been recognized for boldly challenging the gender stereotypes in Zambia, being the first and only coffee estate to employ women for traditionally male-dominated roles such as driving tractors and even larger equipment like road graders and bulldozers. A strong focus on gender equality means this coffee directly contributes to the empowerment of women.
The Art of Production
The best cherries are carefully selected with double handpicking (ensuring a consistency of over 98% of fully formed red ripe cherries) before being dried on raised beds. The cherries are spread across the beds in thin layers to ensure even drying, and regularly turned over a period of 3 to 4 weeks.
The Region
The Northern Province of Zambia shares its borders with Tanzania to the East and D.R. Congo to the North. It also occupies the southern shore of Lake Tanganyika - the world’s longest fresh-water lake, the largest in Africa by volume and also its deepest.
The Northern Province has the best conditions for arabica coffee cultivation in Zambia with its relative proximity to the equator and abundant altitude (Mafinga Hills being the highest point in the country at 2,300 masl).
The local economy is dominated by agriculture with coffee being the primary commercial crop, alongside subsistence crops such as maize, millet, groundnuts and beans. The mountainous terrain and lack of transport infrastructure makes this region challenging to work in, but also one most in need of the investment and development which the coffee industry can bring.
