Cropping
12 Things you didn ’ t know about robusta coffee farming in Africa
Robusta is a coffee variety that is mostly used in instant coffee and a filler for blends . It is mostly grown in Africa alongside Arabica beans . According to recent reports , Robusta coffee beans , whose production in Africa had declined significantly over the last few decades due to pests , diseases and civil war in some producing countries , is slowly making a comeback . Below are some things you probably didn ' t know about Robusta coffee farming in Africa .
Robusta coffee was discovered in Africa Robusta and Arabica varieties were first discovered in Africa . Robusta was discovered growing wildly in Republic of Congo ( former Belgium Congo ) in 1898 . In ancient times , it was also chewed by the Buganda tribe in
July - August 2016
Uganda .
It ' s named after a Belgian firm It draws its name from Robusta , the trade name of a Belgium horticultural firm that marketed the coffee species after its discovery in the early period of the 20th Century .
It was initially known as Coffea Laurentii The coffee beans were initially known as ' Coffea laurentii ' in honor of Emil L a u r e n t , t h e F r e n c h m a n w h o discovered the crop growing wildly in Belgium Congo . It changed to ' Coffea robusta ' after the Belgium firm started marketing it .
Uganda is Africa ' s ' s biggest producer of Robusta coffee Uganda is the biggest producer of the crop in Africa . It produced 4.8 million bags in the 2015-16 season , which is a
FARMERS
[ 40 ] REVIEW AFRICA record in the nation ' s robusta coffee production history .
Top foreign exchange earner for Uganda Robusta and Arabica coffee are the leading exports for Uganda . In 2015 , the nation exported 285.3 million kilogrammes .
Accounts for 40 percent of Africa ' s annual coffee production Robusta accounts for about 40 percent of total coffee production in Africa annually . In 2015 , Uganda and Ivory Coast produced about 7 million bags of robusta coffee . Other countries that produce the coffee variety include South Sudan , Ethiopia and Congo Brazzaville .
Robusta coffee was South Sudan ' s first ever non-oil export In 2015 , Nespresso , a global coffee
www . farmersreviewafrica . com