Nkanda #1
Deep in the Kayanza Province in the northern reaches of Burundi is the Nkanda Washing Station. This region is well-known for coffee production thanks to the rich volcanic soils and climbing altitudes. The country is small and comprised primarily of smallholder producers who collectively bring their coffee to washing stations to export.
The Nkanda Washing Station was started by Pierre Nzeyimana and his family in 2017, the PROCASTA acronym translating to ‘Promotion du Café Specialitie de Tangara’ or ‘the promotion of specialty coffee in Tangara.’ The Tangara community are a collection of humble and dedicated producers that have benefitted greatly from the support of Pierre and various customer-funded projects.
- Farm Nkanda Washing Station
- Varietal Red Bourbon
- Process Fully washed
- Altitude 1,600-2,000 meters above sea level
- Town / City Tangara Commune
- Region Kayanza
- Owner 1,253 smallholder producers
- Tasting Notes Lemon, Black Tea, Apricot
- Farm Size Less than 1 hectare on average
Despite its small size, Burundi is home to roughly 600,000 – 800,000 coffee-producing families in five different regions. Coffee started as a cash crop here during the time spent as a Belgian colony in the 1930s. Once the country gained independence in 1962, the World Bank assisted the government in allocating resources to plant more coffee and construct washing stations. Coffee production grew until the breakout of the civil war in 1993, that lasted until 2003. This led to the abandonment of coffee farms, and destruction of numerous coffee trees. It also grew increasingly more difficult to transport coffee out of the landlocked country. When the civil war finally ended in 2005 and a new president was elected – more attention was focused on coffee production. Today, Burundi has become a small but significant contributor to the East African coffee market.