African Coffee Output May Almost Double in Five Years

Production may rise by 2-3 million bags a year, body says
Nations are boosting plantings and recovering from conflicts

Picked ripened coffee cherries sit in a bucket during a coffee harvest at the Mandela Estate, Gatundu South, in Kiambu County, Kenya, on Thursday, Dec. 14, 2017. The U.S. surpassed Germany to become the biggest buyer of Kenyan coffee when its purchases jumped 46 percent to 8.9 million kilograms (19.6 million pounds) in the 2016-17 season, according to the East African nation’s Coffee Directorate.Photographer: Luis Tato/Bloomberg

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By Fred Ojambo

February 15, 2018 at 5:00 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

African coffee output could almost double in the next five years as some countries boost plantings and make farming more productive, according to the African Fine Coffees Association.

Production could rise by between 2 million and 3 million bags in each of the next five years, partly as farming improves in nations previously affected by conflicts, Ishak Lukenge, the association chairman, said in an interview in Kampala, Uganda. African output is expected to total about 16 million bags this season, U.S. government data show. A bag weighs 60 kilograms (132 pounds).