John Kamau, a 27-year-old, is redefining Kenya’s coffee sector through value addition, a segment still largely unexplored by many young people in the country.
Through his firm Jungle Harvest Coffee Roasters, Kamau offers value-added services to farmers, boosting their earnings and empowering them in their venture.
Jungle Harvest Coffee also sources green beans from youth- and women-led groups with the aim of empowering marginalized demographics.
Narrating his journey, Kamau revealed his love for coffee began at a very young age, inspired by his father, a coffee expert, who worked in the country’s coffee value chain.
“My father worked in the coffee value chain in various coffee estates. I was born in Kakuzi Coffee Estate, where I started interacting with coffee at a very young age,” he told Kilimo News.
Kamau revealed that his father taught him different processing methods, including wet, dry, and natural, as well as the potential of by-products such as coffee husks, which can be used to make disposable cups or as manure.
“I think my father played a big role in me venturing into the coffee industry. From him, I got the interest to know more about coffee. I remember even getting to ask him very weird questions at a very young age, because I was interested in knowing more about coffee,” he added.
With his passion inclined toward coffee, Kamau enrolled for a degree in Agribusiness at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), before seeking further training as a Barista and gradually moving into roasting.
His journey took him overseas to Kuwait, where he worked as a barista and gained hands-on experience in coffee preparation and roasting.
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“When working as a barista, since I had a foundation course in roasting, I was also trying to do part-time roasting in other cafes,” he says.
Returning to Kenya, Kamau enrolled in the EU-EAC MARKUP II program, implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC) in partnership with the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA).
He trained in both foundation and intermediate roasting techniques and became a certified SCA Coffee Roaster, leading to the launch of his company Jungle Harvest Coffee Roasters.
“As I was doing the roasting course, I came to think more about the farmer. The farmer can sell his or her coffee in cherry form, but the value when it is value-added is very different. So, I tried to interlink the gap between the farmer and the final product.”
Today, Kamau assists farmers to have a taste of their produce through value addition, at the same time boosting their earnings.
His innovative model recently earned him recognition in the UNIDO Innovation Challenge, a global competition focused on sustainability in coffee.
“I decided to give it a try. With God’s grace, we managed to get it. I’m very humbled to have been a winner among the three challenges,” Kamau says.
Looking ahead, Kamau aims to boost domestic coffee consumption, which remains low in Kenya, and to raise awareness that coffee is “not just a beverage, but a skill in terms of preparation and roasting.”
