BACKGROUND

Karatu Coffee Factory is located in Central Province, Thika District in Ndarugu location of Gatundu Division near Gatundu town. It was established in 1965 and rests on 11 acres piece of land serving Karatu, Gitwe, Kibiru and Kigaa Villages.

Currently it is affiliated to Gitwe Farmer Co-operative Society Ltd. Its membership currently stands at 800 which 700 are active farmers while 100 are inactive farmers. The most unique aspect of this factory is that it’s houses the society head office.

LOCATION

Karatu factory is located at Githunguri sub County; Kiambu County. The three parcels of land lie between 1883m above sea level.

SOILS AND CLIMATE

This factory lies about 1883m, Accuracy of 9m, Location (00 56.896S, 036 49 877E). The soil is red. The area experiences temperatures ranging between 13-24 degrees Celsius. The long rains fall between March-May while the short rains come between October and December.

RAINFALL

Reliable bi modal rainfall of above 1400mm per annum is characteristic of these high altitude regions around the Aberdare Ranges, which are transition zones for coffee and tea. The long rains fall between March and May while the short rains come between October and December.

PROCESSING

After harvesting all the coffee is delivered to the factory and undergoes the wet processing method. Water is pumped from River Rwabura to the reservoir tanks for pulping and recirculation.

Red, ripe cherries are separated from under-ripes, over-ripes and any foreign matter, and the wet mill processing utilizes clean river water that’s later re-circulated before it is disposed of in seepage pits. Before the coffee is delivered to the dry mill for secondary processing, it’s dried in the sun on traditional raised beds.

To ensure that the processing is carried out efficiently the factory has invested in a pulper, a recirculation system and about 22 conditioning bins.

SUSTAINABLE FARMING

In line with the rising awareness on the need to conserve the environment, the factory has dug the waste water soak pits away from the water source where the waste water is allowed to soak in back to the soil. Currently the factory does not engage in waste water treatment. Additionally the society encourages its members to plant trees on their farms.

MANAGEMENT

Karatu Coffee factory is run by a factory manager who oversees all activities within the factory. Together with other staff members they carry out duties such as weighing coffee, selection and grading of coffee, paying farmers and addressing farmers’ complaints.

ECOLOGY

In addition to coffee, common crops grown are banana and maize. Grevillea or macadamia trees are also planted to provide shade to the growing coffee trees.

WELFARE

Currently the factory offers farm inputs on credit and cash advances to farmers as incentives.