My Basket
Toggle Nav
Search
Advanced Search
Menu
Account

D.R. Congo Katanda K3 (Fully Washed)

Vanilla, rum and raisin, stone fruits, cranberry
Log in to view price
Bag Weight 60 KG BAG
Status Spot
Lot Number P8001549-2
  • Out of Stock Bag(s)
Log In To Buy / Sample
main product photo

About This Coffee

Katanda Coffee Washing Station (CWS) is one of 7 washing stations belonging to Virunga Coffee Company, setup by Schluter (now Olam Specialty Europe) in 2012 to produce high quality coffees for the specialty market and increase premiums for the thousands of smallholder farmers in the region. The strategy for Virunga has been three-fold: 1) To increase production through good agronomic practice 2) to improve quality through education and strict guidelines for production and processing 3) to obtain internationally recognised certification in order to generate better revenue for farmers.

Virunga now have now trained over 2,300 famers in GAP (Good agricultural practices) and obtained organic certification for these farmers in the Isale region. They have 7 full time field officers (trained agronomists) working in the region and have planted over 400,000 seedlings to be distributed amongst the smallholders in Isale.

Origin Democratic Republic of Congo
Subregion Lubero, Isale, North Kivu
Producer Type Washing Station
Wet Mill Katanda
Processing Washed
Plant Species Arabica
Variety Bourbon
Coffee Grade DRC CA WA KIVU G3
Bag Weight 60 KG BAG
Bag Types Grain Pro / Ecotact

The Region

Katanda village is located in the Isale region of Nord-Kivu (North of Lake Kivu), on the edge of Virunga National Park, bordered by Uganda to the east. The region has excellent conditions for speciality arabica production with plentiful rainfall, high altitude and highly fertile volcanic soils. The region is also very poverty-stricken and has had a severe lack of infrastructure which has made high quality arabica both difficult to produce and very challenging to export. Virunga Coffee Company has sought to overcome many of these problems through hands-on farmer education and investment in local infrastructure such as roads and bridges. This has allowed quality improvements every season and, in turn, higher premiums for farmers.

The Process

Ripe cherries are delivered to the station for careful sorting and floatation. Once the highest quality cherries are selected they are pulped to remove the skin and most of the fruit. The coffee is then placed straight onto raised African beds, retaining some of its sugary mucilage. This parchment coffee is then dried in the sun for an average of 14 days, until the optimum moisture content has been reached. At this point the coffee is rested in a cool, dry environment for 1-2 months, before being milled, sorted and graded by bean size.

  • Subregion Lubero, Isale, North Kivu
  • Producer Type Washing Station
  • Wet Mill Katanda
  • Processing Washed
  • Bag Types Grain Pro / Ecotact
  • Plant Species Arabica
  • Variety Bourbon
  • On Sale No
  • Top Lot No
  • Price Per Kg €8.70
  • Status Spot
  • Certifications AtSource Plus
  • Coffee Grade DRC CA WA KIVU G3
  • CTRM Contract Number P8001549-2
  • Origin Democratic Republic of Congo
  • Warehouse Schwarze & Consort.