Coffee prices rise in Ibanda
Jan 16, 2024
Presently, Robusta coffee trades at a record high of sh9,200 per kilogram in Ibanda town, but the beans go for sh8,900 a kilo in Kashangura in Kagongo division, Ibanda municipality.
A farmer picks coffee. Robusta coffee now costs sh9,200 a kilo in Ibanda. (Photos by Stephen Nuwagira)
Stephen Nuwagira
Journalist @New Vision
___________________________ Kiboko coffee goes for up to sh4,600 per kilo
Farmers in Ibanda are laughing all the way to the bank following coffee price gains over the past few months.
Presently, Robusta coffee trades at a record high of sh9,200 per kilogram in Ibanda town, but the beans go for sh8,900 a kilo in Kashangura in Kagongo division, Ibanda municipality.
This indicates an increase from sh8,700 and sh8,300, respectively, at the beginning of December last year. The current price ranges are the highest to be registered in the district over the past few years.
This is even though the Robusta coffee harvest season is expected to end in February, having started in mid-September, 2023. Usually, when the harvest season is about to end, prices drop because the outturn and quality of the coffee are always low, which hasn't been the case this time.
Meanwhile, Arabica coffee prices were also up, going for shillings 10,000 a kilo in Kashangura and 9,700 in Ibanda town. This shows an increase from shillings 8,000 at the start of last month.
Deogratias Tihwayo, a coffee trader, projects the price of Arabica to increase further in the coming weeks as more buyers enter the market. The Arabica coffee harvest period is slated to start in March.
Levi Tibenderana, a coffee farmer in Kigarama Bisheshe Division, says the good prices had boosted the morale of farmers and attracted other people to plant coffee.
Apollo Bigirwa from Kashangura adds that some people who had abandoned the crop for vanilla were starting to rehabilitate their plantations. Vanilla prices have declined over the past few seasons, something that has demoralised many.
UCDA indicative prices
Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) indicative prices for Monday, January 15 show that kiboko ranges from sh4,000-4,500 a kilo, FAQ (fair average quality) is between sh8,600 and 9,400. Arabica parchment costs sh10,000-11,000 per kilogram and that of drugar coffee (clean) varies from sh9,000 to 9,500.
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