Claudia Bellinzoni<\/span><\/a>, gets to experience whenever she goes to Tanzania, a place where she once lived to work in coffee, and where she is constantly exploring new possibilities along with re-connecting with old friends, colleagues, and cup profiles. <\/span><\/p>\nThis fall, Claudia made her annual trip back to Tanzania to source coffees, keep in touch with export partners and friends, and to report back about the harvest this year. \u201cIt was a similar trip to last year\u2014almost three weeks, from the north to the south,\u201d she says. \u201cI lived in the south and my friends are in the south, but the north is amazing. It may be even more beautiful, when you go to the Kilimanjaro. But my favorite park is in the south.\u201d Thankfully, we don\u2019t ask her to choose favorite regions, just favorite coffees. <\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_image _builder_version=”3.7″ src=”\/\/cdn.cafeimports.com\/images\/DSCN_6760.jpg” \/][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_image _builder_version=”3.7″ src=”\/\/cdn.cafeimports.com\/images\/DSCN_5867.jpg” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”TextThe north and the south” _builder_version=”3.7″ text_orientation=”justified”]<\/p>\n
The north and the south of Tanzania are not only different geographically, but also in terms of the coffee landscape. Larger estates still dominate in the north, many owned through the generations by European-descent colonial families, or, lately, operated through investment by coffee-holding groups or new management. <\/span><\/p>\nClaudia visited several farms in the north in search of new relationships, particularly with family-owned estates, where she sees the most opportunity. \u201cThey have a lot of potential,\u201d she says of many of the farms she saw. \u201cThey are developing more and more, and the farms are really good, really beautiful. The altitude is really high.\u201d While coffee estates are often known for being somewhat risk averse\u2014\u201cwhy fix what ain\u2019t broken,\u201d in other words\u2014Claudia learned from several about interesting new processes and experiments they\u2019re trying out. One family described the \u201ccarbonic maceration\u201d they\u2019re trying out during the fermentation process on their coffee, while she describes another that\u2019s \u201cdoing some sort of anaerobic process\u201d that involves fermentation inside of wine barrels. \u201cThey put some coffees in a wine barrel and then they flip it over. There\u2019s one individual who pushes the wine barrel up and down, up and down,\u201d Claudia says. \u201cIt\u2019s very clean but very fruity. Like a very fruity Washed coffee, really like a fruit bomb.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_image _builder_version=”3.7″ src=”\/\/cdn.cafeimports.com\/images\/DSCN_6191.jpg” align=”center” max_width=”90%” \/][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_text admin_label=”The North” _builder_version=”3.7″ text_orientation=”justified”]<\/p>\n
Our historical partner in the northern part of the country, and the estate from which we can expect another year of fantastic arrivals, is Ngila Estate, a 250-hectare farm in Karatu near the Ngorongoro crater. (Farms near the crater and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area have unique difficulties with their four-legged neighbors: Elephants and buffalo in the area routinely trample the coffee fields and need to be kept away\u2014but just try to tell that to the elephants!) The farm has been Rainforest Alliance\/Utz certified for over a decade, and focuses on traditional methods of pest and disease control rather than commercially manufactured chemicals. <\/span><\/p>\n\u201cThey have a small house on the coffee farm, it\u2019s really beautiful,\u201d Claudia says. They have all these new technologies, with drip irrigation and water-saving coffee processing equipment. They have great staff, and they\u2019re doing a really good job. I cupped all day, visited the mill, and visited the farm.\u201d The coffees Claudia describes from Ngila this year are worth looking forward to: citrus, cinnamon, plum, honey, walnuts. \u201cVery smooth,\u201d she adds. \u201cThe body is really nice.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”The South AMCOS” _builder_version=”3.7″ text_orientation=”justified”]<\/p>\n
In the country\u2019s south, Cafe Imports\u2019 primary relationships are with the AMCOS, or Agricultural Marketing Cooperative Societies, democratically run groups of growers who share processing facilities and sell their coffee as blended lots. Most of the AMCOS are centered around a mill or receiving station, typically within walking distance (though for many people in the area, \u201cwalking distance\u201d could very well be several kilometers, rather than simply a few blocks). While some of the producers deliver in cherry, others depulp on their own property and haul sacks of mucilage-covered or partially fermented parchment to the group: It\u2019s important to find partners who encourage producers to deliver fresh cherry, for uniformity and quality\u2019s sake. <\/span><\/p>\nLike Farmer Cooperative Societies in Kenya, the AMCOS might have anywhere from several hundred to a thousand or more members, which makes traceability down to the individual farmers per lot impossible; this also means that rewarding or incentivizing quality with premium prices isn\u2019t feasible, either, which can also Having a strong and trustworthy relationship on the ground is incredibly important\u2014otherwise, it can be hard to guarantee that the sales price is getting to the right hands. <\/span><\/p>\nWhile it can be difficult to find counterparties who are committed both to the producers as well as the cup, Claudia has developed a relationship with a group that works with 21 AMCOS, and which shows its care through tangible action and integrity. \u201cThey have an amazing mill,\u201d she says, \u201cand they offer interest-free pre-harvest finance, assist with building washing stations, and they allow the AMCOS to learn the entire process of coffee. They\u2019re really invested in working and cooperating with these groups. To be honest, it\u2019s tone of the best relationships I\u2019ve had in Africa.” <\/span><\/p>\nSeveral of the affiliated AMCOS are also actively encouraging the younger generation to stay in coffee, and is using a school project to teach them how they can earn better prices and make a good living by focusing on quality. \u201cThere are something like 50 teenagers who have decided they want to work in coffee,\u201d Claudia explains. \u201cIn school, they receive coffee training one or two days a week, and each of the students receives 50 to 100 coffee trees to take care of during the school year. I went to meet the students and to see what they do. They were really enthusiastic! Happy to work in coffee and looking forward to grow.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_image _builder_version=”3.7″ src=”\/\/cdn.cafeimports.com\/images\/DSCN_0814.jpg” max_width=”90%” \/][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_image _builder_version=”3.7″ src=”\/\/cdn.cafeimports.com\/images\/DSCN_6328.jpg” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Seasons end” _builder_version=”3.7″ text_orientation=”justified”]<\/p>\n
Our offerings from the south this year are also showing some real promise on the cupping table: Claudia says that the profile is less reminiscent of the Kenyan characteristics that the northern lots typically have. \u201cIn the south it\u2019s super citrus, all kinds. Mandarins, lemon, and also this apricot. Sometimes this floral. The peaberry is particularly good in the south as well.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_image _builder_version=”3.7″ src=”\/\/cdn.cafeimports.com\/images\/DSCN_6156.jpg” \/][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Seasons end” _builder_version=”3.7″ text_orientation=”justified”]<\/p>\n
As for the season, it ended sooner than expected as the harvest was lower across the country\u2014during Claudia\u2019s visit, southern Tanzania\u2019s farms had all been picked clean already. The main problem in Tz is CBD, or Coffee Berry Disease: a fungus that thrives in high humidity and warm temperatures, and which causes coffee cherries to turn black and rot, or to snap off the branches while they\u2019re still underripe. The nonprofit, stakeholder-owned Tanzanian Coffee Research Institute (TaCRI) is actively focused on combating CBD, in part through new cultivars and resistant hybrids. \u201cThe institute has developed 19 different resistant varieties from Bourbon and Kent,\u201d Claudia says. \u201cThey\u2019re known as compact hybrids, because they take only\u00a0 <\/span>18 months to start producing cherries, versus the standard three years. They\u2019re easier to prune, and to take shoots from the mother plant in order to propagate seeds.\u201d These coffees are being distributed by TaCRI, but Claudia says, \u201cmany are reluctant to take them\u201d for reasons of quality, tradition, temporary yield loss, skepticism\u2014any number of factors. It is incredibly difficult and labor-intensive to renovate farms with new coffee trees, whether on the very small farms typically found in the south (from 1\/8th a hectare to 2 hectares total) or the larger northern estates. <\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Conclusion” _builder_version=”3.7″ header_text_align=”justify”]<\/p>\n
With the push to renovate at the farm level and to innovate in processing, however, we still see a great future for building and maintaining relationships in Tanzania, well beyond the peaberry. \u201cIt\u2019s a huge country,\u201d Claudia says. \u201cThere\u2019s so much to explore.\u201d She gets just a little wistful for a moment, then continues. \u201cI love Tanzania. I miss the nature and the silence, waking up with the birds around me. The sunset, the animals, everything related to nature and the people are amazing. I have good memories.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nWe think you\u2019ll be able to taste them in the cup.<\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][et_pb_cta button_text=”Current Offerings” use_background_color=”off” background_color=”#7bb262″ border_style=”solid” custom_button=”on” button_url=”https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/offerings#\/origin=Tanzania\/” header_font=”Changa One||||” button_text_color_hover=”#ffffff” button_text_color=”#000000″ button_border_color=”#000000″ button_bg_color_hover=”#911814″ button_border_color_hover=”#911814″ module_class=”CI-divi-button1″ custom_css_promo_button=”width: 100%;||min-height: 90px;||” saved_tabs=”all” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_size=”initial” _builder_version=”3.7″ \/][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Every green-coffee buyer and every coffee traveler has their own reasons for the places that feel particularly special to them. For some it\u2019s the thrill of a new location, for others it\u2019s the comfort of returning somewhere comfortable and familiar. For others, it\u2019s all about flavor. Occasionally, when you\u2019re really lucky, it\u2019s a combination of all three: That\u2019s what Cafe Imports\u2019 green-coffee buyer for Africa, Claudia Bellinzoni, gets to experience whenever she goes to Tanzania, a place where she once lived to work in coffee, and where she is constantly exploring new possibilities along with re-connecting with old friends, colleagues, and cup profiles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":43935,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[308],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tanzania"],"site_id":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43902","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43902"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43902\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cafeimports.com\/north-america\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}