Commonfolk & Uganda

Commonfolk Coffee Company is excited to announce that with the funds raised through 'The Cup That Counts' we have officially established a coffee demonstration farm on Mt Elgon in the Ugandan highlands. The land has been sustaining a small population of coffee plants naturally, so it was cleared of weeds and improved for coffee farming. Over 800 seedlings have been planted in addition to the naturally occuring coffee plants. All the new seedlings were carefully selected to reflect the conditions of the farm.

High quality Arabica coffee plants were grafted onto Robusta root stock to increase disease resitence and hardiness. It will take around two years for the plants to reach maturity, however the first coffee cherries will be harvested this year. In addition to the land and coffee plants, Commonfolk also purchased a motorbike as a means of transport for the agriculturalist aka Ronaldo, who is working on our plantation. Ronaldo has already started to implement sustainable farming techniques to ensure the long term success of our plantation.

Farming concepts that have long been forgotten in Uganda are being revisited to garauntee the quality of our coffee. Appropriate spacing of seedlings, organic fertilizers, the use of companion plants for shade and proper pruning will ensure that our farm both delivers a high quality product and educates other farmers to do the same. In fact our plantation has already begun to draw the attention of other local farmers and coffee plantations, and a move towards sustainble farming practices in other local farms is also underway. 

I will be heading to Uganda in August this year to visit our farm and see where we can best invest our funds in an effort to establish a sustainable coffee industry. I can't tell you all how excited we are to have this oppurtunity and how grateful we are to everybody who buys their daily coffee from Commonfolk. 20c from every cup goes straight to 'The Cup That Counts' so you never have to feel guilty about buying your second coffee at Commonfolk. If you would like more information on how to get involved or donate feel free to shoot me an email at sam.keck@commonfolkcoffee.com.au or visit me at our cafe.