This offering comes to us from the Kiandu Coffee Factory, a washing and milling station in Central Kenya. It is brought to the station by numerous smallholder farmers, all of whom are members of the Mutheka Farmers Cooperative Society, or FCS. The FCS formed in 2004 and uses the motto “Urumwe, Utheri, na Utonga,” which translates to “Unity, Trasparency, and Wealth.” The Kiandu station is one of Kenya’s largest. Boasting over 1,900 members and producing 2,500 metric tons annually, they have recieved numerous Kenyan coffee awards for greatness. The cherries are handpicked and delivered to the mill the very same day where they are then processed by hand under strict quality guidelines. The cherries are then moved to tanks where they are fermented between 12 and 48 hours, depending on the outside temperature. Though the region has a storied history of coffee farming, other crops are widely produced, including maize, tea, and various legumes.
