The Mwika coffee growers co-op is located on Mount Kilimanjaro in northwest Tanzania. The cooperative is comprised of local smallholder farmers and their families who own their coffee trees.
The Mwika washing station has been sitting dormant for five years, due to a lack of funding. We're helping to raise funds to get the pulper up and running so that local coffee farmers can create sustainable and long-term livelihoods for their families.
Last year the Tanzanian government changed the laws for small holder farmers, so they can no longer deliver parchment to dry mills, they must now deliver cherry to co-operatives. The Mwika co-op has a pulper but lacks the funds to install it, which means farmers in the area have to either travel further away to deliver their cherry to another co-op or let their coffee crops die.
By funding the install of the pulper and the construction of raised drying beds, the co-op will not only be able to receive all the cherry from the farmers, it will also create employment for farmers to run the equipment and process the coffee. This will create greater stability for the farmers and also increase the volume of coffee the co-op can produce. First Crop Coffee has been buying Mwika coffee for over 5 years, and we will continue our commitment to this co-op when the washing station is up and running.
We’re asking people to get behind us and help fund this project by purchasing tee-shirts and roasted coffee. First Crop Coffee has paid for the tee-shirts, so 100% of the proceeds from these goes towards the fund. The bags of coffee, roasted by our 3 roasting partners supporting this project, will provide $5 from each bag purchased.
Wide Open Road, Inglewood & DC Specialty Coffee Roasters will be kicking in some extra dollars, as will First Crop. The exporters of the coffee will help oversee the investment and loan the Mwika Cooperative any shortfall as an interest-free loan. We're aiming to make this a responsible, realistic and long-term investment in the future of many Tanzanian coffee farmers.
With a bit of help from our coffee community mates and customers, we can get the Mwika mill functioning sooner, rather than later. Hopefully letting our friends in Tanzania know that we're serious about backing them up and supporting them in the long term.
The Tee-shirts have been designed by Adam Parata from www.thesehands.com.au and printed by Born And Thread www.bornandthread.com. Both Adam and the team at Born and Thread have donated their time and skills to get behind the Mwika Project, we are incredibly grateful for their support!