Coffee farmers receive crop under partnership

COFFEE farmers under the Makia Coffee Development Cooperative (MCDC) in Unggai-Bena, Eastern Highlands, have received 100 coffee pulpers over the weekend from Coffee Industry Corporation’s Productive Partnerships in Agriculture Project (CIC-PPAP).
The help in procuring the much-needed machinery comes with subsidised support under PPAP project’s initiative of assisting farmers with necessities to improving coffee production at the farm level.
A coffee pulper currently is sold between K400 and K500.
Under the project, the cost has been subsidised allowing farmers to pay five per cent of the total cost hence per pulper which cost K440 sees farmers contribute K22 as their equity.
CIC general manager for industry operations division Steven Tumae said this was a big relief for farmers under MCDC as families had other commitments and paying only five per cent was a great savings to the group members.
“Only few farmers have coffee pulpers,” he said.
“Those who cannot afford one pay a user fee to other colleague farmers to borrow their pulpers to pulp their coffee.”
Tumae told the community that support would always come through organised groups.