HISTORY OF COFFEE IN UGANDA
Uganda is internationally considered an important coffee producer, exporting around 6 million bags of coffee per year. Coffee exports are an important part of the country’s economy, amounting to 27% of total exports from the country.
The most common coffee variety is the coffe acanephora (robusta coffee), which makes up 90% of the country’s total production and is farmed in a radius of 300 km around Lake Victoria. It is commonly believed that robusta coffee is indigenous to Uganda considering some wild plants of this variety were found near to the Lake Victoria in 1860.
The majority of Ugandan robusta coffee is a “natural” coffee, obtained using the “dry” method. However, there also exists some “washed” coffee, obtained with the “wet” method. The higher costs and organizational requirements necessary for the wet method have often encouraged people toward the production of natural coffee, obtained using the cheaper dry method.
NCoffea arabica (arabica coffee) is not indigenous of the country, but it was introduced from Malawi at the beginning of the 20th century. It is cultivated mainly in the regions of Mount Elgon and in the West. It is possible to find both washed (called Bugisu and Wugars) and natural (Drugars) Arabica coffees in Uganda.
The geographical position of the country, stretched across the equator, allows for coffee to be
harvested in two different seasons. The two main harvest seasons in Uganda for both Arabica and Robusta coffee are March-June and September-Novem- ber.
The main production season for Robusta ranges May-August in the Masaka and Western regions and November to February in the Central and Eastern regions. In the case of Arabica, the main seasons are April-June for the Western Region and October-February for the Eastern and West Nile Regions.