Muyanda might seem like just another small Ugandan community, but it’s actually the hub for Zukuka Bora’s main wet mill. One of the JENGA leaders, Vinny, offered some space early on for drying coffee, and it quickly became a central spot for operations. Located near Mbale, it’s where producers began delivering cherries for Zukuka Bora to buy. Over time, Zukuka Bora expanded, buying nearby land to build a full gravity-fed wet mill with rows of raised drying beds, both open and sheltered. Each year, the site gets better. The latest upgrade? Kenyan-style channels to sort coffee using concrete slides and baths. Ronald, the site manager, and Vicky, the greenhouse manager, lead the teams that handle and dry coffee from nearly every region on Mt. Elgon. When other sites can't keep up or run out of space, they send their coffee down to Muyanda, which, despite having the largest capacity, still sometimes struggles for space. During peak season, around 60% of Zukuka Bora's lots are processed here by a team of over 50 people. Muyanda is the lowest region where the coffee harvest kicks off each year, with cherries ripening slowly up to Bukhanakwa and Bulaago. The Muyanda Washed is Zukuka Bora's biggest lot, showing how much the coffee has improved since the first harvest. It has sweet milk chocolate notes, a crisp green grape acidity, and a plum wine tartness. As Zukuka Bora has grown, so has the Muyanda community. There are more shops, jobs, and a sense of pride in being recognized as the home of Zukuka Bora.
Did you know 20c from every kilogram of coffee roasted and every cup sold goes to The Cup That Counts.