Mozambique, Namaacha, Local varieties, Natural

Mozambique’s coffee industry is still in its early stages, rebuilding after years of decline. With support from AMOCAFÉ, the country is working to grow production and establish itself in specialty coffee. Most farms are linked to reforestation projects, but Namaacha Green Farm near Maputo stands out as the largest producer in the south. The farm grows mainly Red Bourbon at 700–800 masl and processes all coffee as naturals on raised beds.

A unique tasting lot from an almost new producing country, with gin like flavours of juniper, citrus, chamomile and grapefruit - A tiny lot that's perfect for the explorers among us.

DETAILS

Mozambique’s coffee industry is at the embryonic stage, with most modern coffee projects only beginning post-2020. Historically, the Portuguese colonial administration emphasised tea production in Mozambique, while promoting coffee farming in Angola. During its colonial occupation, Mozambique was mostly known for Robusta coffee production, and by the time civil war broke out in 1977 following the declaration of independence in 1975 it produced around 1000 metric tons per year. This quantity declined significantly throughout the fifteen years of war, now down to only 100 tons 40 years later.

In recent years the government of Mozambique has created a ten year sector development plan that aims to increase production to 5000 hectares from the current total of around 300, and has created AMOCAFÉ a national association of coffee producers. The government aims to export 100 tons of coffee in 2025, nearly triple the previous years harvest.

The ambition, driven by the AMOCAFÉ, is to turn the still emerging coffee production into a sector that can rival the continent’s leading names within the next decade.

Most of the country’s current coffee projects are focused on the reforestation of degraded lands, primarily in the central regions of Gorongosa and Chimanimani, with new shade-covered coffee production used as a method for reforesting lands previously cleared for more intensive agriculture.

Namaacha Green Farm is something of an outlier. A small family farm managed by brothers Polyphile and Muhire. It's located in the region of the same name in the south of the country, west of the capital city Maputo and close to the borders with Eswatini and South Africa.

The farm currently has four hectares of land producing coffee, and over the past year, Polyphile and Muhire planted an additional four and a half hectares with coffee seedlings. They’ve also introduced shade cover plants, which are still younger than the coffee trees but will eventually provide shelter and protection. Today, Namaacha stands as the largest coffee operation in Maputo Province and the entire southern region of the country.

The coffees are grown at 700-800masl and the bulk of production is red bourbon with some smaller amounts of yellow bourbon and local varieties. All coffees are currently processed as naturals on raised beds.