Kenya Kiamugumo AB - Anaweza Foundation benefit

The Story Behind the Coffee

Kiamugumo factory is situated in the community of Ngariama on the slopes of Mount Kenya. In this area of Kenya, smallholders deliver coffee in cherry to washing stations. The cherries are washed and depulped with water from the Kii River. After washing, the coffee is dried on typical African raised beds, which allow for good air circulation between the beans. We love this coffee for its bright and fresh fruit flavors, its undeniably refreshing acidity, and juicy profile. We taste blackberry, brown sugar, and lime.

The farms in Ngariama are mostly very small (1-2 hectares) and adults work the farms while children attend school all day. Schools here cost money, which limits access to education and future opportunities in this mostly-poor area. Due to lack of opportunity, much of the young population is migrating en masse to cities in search of better jobs, leaving their parents alone on the farms or even taking their parents and abandoning their farms. This problem gets worse each year.

That is why we have partnered with a local nonprofit with operations in Kenya: Anaweza. In Kenya, tens of thousands of children suffer from poverty and all its consequences - broken families, malnutrition, and a lack of economic prospects. Anaweza’s mission is to create a brighter future for the orphaned and vulnerable children in Kenya. They aim to do this by providing the children with the opportunity to attain a quality education, which Anaweza believes is the key that unlocks the door to a brighter future.

Each bag of Backyard Beans Kenyan coffee purchased through the month of August helps feed, house, nurture, and educate the children sponsored in this program. Once brought into the Anaweza family, they make a commitment to provide for them during the entirety of their education, acting as the bulwark between the children and a regression towards poverty. Anaweza’s program also nurtures leadership and community building skills so that the children can act as agents of change within Kenyan society. Just this year, ten of their sponsored children graduated from high school and have started their journey in higher education. They represent the first of many success stories Anaweza hopes to share as they continue to empower Kenyan children in need.