From Conservation to Coffee: A Conversation with Helen of Ngoe AB, Kenya

Great coffee always has a story behind it. Sometimes that story begins with a family farm, sometimes with a passion for craft, and sometimes, like in Helen’s case, it begins in an entirely different field.

Helen is a conservation biologist by profession and a coffee farmer by heritage. Her farm in Kenya produces some of the delicious coffee that Chimney Fire Coffee proudly roasts. What makes her story particularly compelling is how her background in conservation, sustainability, and community work has shaped the way she approaches coffee farming today.

From childhood days picking coffee at her grandmother’s farm to building direct trade relationships that bring her coffee from Kenya to the UK, Helen’s journey offers a thoughtful perspective on the realities of coffee production, the challenges farmers face, and the opportunities that exist for improving the coffee value chain.

We spoke with Helen about her background, her farm, and her hopes for the future of Kenyan coffee.

CAN YOU SHARE A BIT ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND AND HOW YOU FIRST BECAME INVOLVED IN COFFEE?

Coffee is actually a side occupation for me. I am a conservation biologist by profession, and I have spent my career working in and managing various organisations in the conservation sector, mostly focused on wildlife conservation.

I come from a family that has a small coffee farm, with one parent who was very keen on coffee production. I also happened to run an organisation, the Africa Wildlife Foundation, which has a coffee project in several coffee-growing areas in Central Kenya that were adjacent to national parks.

I provided oversight on the project, which worked with a few coffee cooperative societies and several hundred farmers to improve coffee husbandry and milling processes. The goal of the project at the farmer level was to help farms improve the quality and quantity of their coffee through better agronomic practices, and therefore fetch better prices for their coffee. At the cooperative level, the goal was to support more sustainable practices at the factory, including better water conservation measures as well as improved milling practices.

It was through that project that I began to better understand coffee farming and the challenges that farmers face. However, my encounter with coffee goes way back to when I was a young girl. My sisters and I spent a lot of time at my grandmother’s during school holidays, and we would pick coffee from the trees and take it to the factory for milling. We didn’t particularly enjoy the work, but my grandmother could not afford external labour, so her children and grandchildren provided the labour. 

WHAT DREW YOU DEEPER INTO COFFEE FARMING, WHAT CHALLENGES HAVE YOU FACED, AND WHAT CONTINUES TO DRIVE YOUR PASSION TODAY?

Coffee is more of a hobby than a career for me. I wanted to understand coffee from the farm right to the cup, and the challenges across the whole value chain.

Initially, I was frustrated by the many regulations that farmers have to deal with that are specific to coffee, and the many players along the chain. In comparison to other countries in the region where coffee production has increased significantly, Kenya has yet to return to its earlier production levels because of these challenges in the coffee subsector. They generally keep farmers’ returns low, making coffee quite an unattractive crop to grow.

So why do I stay? I feel challenged to understand how the subsector works fully and to see where the opportunities for value creation lie.

COULD YOU DESCRIBE THE PROCESS OF HOW YOUR COFFEE IS GROWN AND HARVESTED, AND ARE THERE ANY SPECIAL TECHNIQUES OR TRADITIONS THAT YOU’VE INHERITED OR DEVELOPED?

We do wet processing and are careful to pick only ripe cherries. We also try to minimise the use of inorganic chemicals, except when we face diseases that we cannot control using organic treatments. Much of our approach comes from traditional practices combined with what we have learned over time about sustainable farming. We try to balance maintaining healthy coffee trees with protecting the broader environment on the farm.

HOW DO YOU ENSURE SUSTAINABILITY AND QUALITY IN YOUR COFFEE FARMING?

I am very concerned about the state of the environment within the farm. While we have planted indigenous trees to shade the coffee, we have not done enough and are continuing to add trees that are less prone to pests to reduce transmission to the coffee plants. We have focused strongly on soil and water conservation since we do not irrigate the coffee. This includes mulching with coffee pulp, terracing on slopes, and reducing fertiliser use. We stopped using herbicides several years ago for weeding, and now use techniques that retain ground cover to reduce soil erosion. Other practices include reducing water use during wet milling, using water from the wet mill to irrigate other crops (especially bananas), and converting diesel-run equipment to hydro-powered pumps, with plans to move to solar power soon. We are also exploring solar dryers to help retain the quality of the coffee. On the social sustainability side, we make an effort to give women the opportunity to pick coffee and pay them above minimum wage.

HOW DID YOU FIRST MEET DAN, AND HOW HAS THAT RELATIONSHIP  EVOLVED TO WHAT IT IS TODAY?

I first came to know Dan through coffee farmer and agronomist Robert Thuo, who was then working for the Nyeri County Government and was responsible for agriculture. Robert and Dan had worked together on coffee and cocoa traceability for many years, with one of their previous projects together involving my farm. 

Robert and I had also worked together previously, and he knew I was looking to build direct trade relationships with international buyers. Because he understood both Dan’s approach and my hopes for Ngoe Farm, he saw the connection straight away.

Although we stayed in touch and shared that ambition from early on, logistical issues meant we were not able to supply coffee directly to Dan at first. In 2025, that changed, and our first shipment was finally sent, marking an important new milestone in our relationship.

WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES FOR THE FUTURE OF YOUR COFFEE AND THE FARM?

I hope to continue improving both the quality and quantity of our coffee, with plans to increase production three- to fourfold over the next six years.

I would also like to build more direct trade relationships for our coffee. Alongside this, I am keen to experiment with different processing methods so that we can offer a wider range of specialty coffees and achieve better pricing.

We also want to do more on sustainability, particularly from both an environmental and social perspective.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE WAY OF MAKING COFFEE AT HOME?

Just a simple French press coffee, though I sometimes make pour-over as well.

IF YOU COULD MAKE ONE BOLD CHANGE IN THE COFFEE INDUSTRY TOMORROW — NO LIMITS — WHAT WOULD IT BE?

I would simplify the value chain and find ways to add more value to coffee in producing countries so that more of the monetary value remains there, especially for smallholder farmers. A value that is shared by Chimney Fire Coffee

FROM NGOE FARM TO YOUR CUP

A huge thanks to Helen for speaking with us. Her approach to coffee reflects a deep understanding of both farming and the wider ecosystem that surrounds it, from soil and water conservation to improving how farmers participate in the coffee value chain.

At Chimney Fire Coffee, we’re proud to roast coffee from Ngoe Farm and share it with our community. Every bag represents careful farming, thoughtful stewardship of the land, and a direct partnership that connects the farm more closely to the people who enjoy the coffee. If you'd like to try it for yourself, you can purchase a bag using the link below. We hope you love it as much as we do!