Coffee seedlings on a 50% loan
For farmers expanding an existing farm, filling gaps in old blocks, or starting out for the first time.
Lolgorian, Narok County
We work with farmers beyond the cherry harvest
From seedlings and farm advice to buying your cherry and paying you directly, our support follows the coffee through the season.
How we work
The relationship, not just the harvest
Most exporters turn up at the collection point. We start before that — with the seedlings, the inputs and the advice — and we stay after it, paying you directly and rewarding a good season.
Share Kenya’s coffee story — pure, flavorful and authentic — from farm to final cup.
More than 2,500 farming families work with us, and we farm over 300 acres ourselves.
See how we work with farmers
From the first seedling to the final payment
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Support
Seedlings, inputs and agronomy reach you before you need them, not after the season has gone wrong.
- Seedlings on a 50% loan
- Farm inputs on loan
- Free agronomy
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Grow
Training, farm visits and good management practice, all the way through the season.
- Farmer training
- Regular farm visits
- Coffee calendar guidance
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Deliver
You bring the ripe cherry to us. We weigh it, sort it and take it from there.
- Sorted at collection
- No broker in the chain
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Get paid
Straight into your own bank account, every month, on terms agreed in writing.
- Direct, monthly
- Agreed in writing
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Grow with Mara
The relationship does not stop at the sale. Good performance is rewarded.
- Yearly bonus
- Farmer incentives
- Prizes and recognition
Farmer support
What actually reaches the farm
Three things a grower can count on before a single cherry is picked.
Farm inputs on loan
Full farm input support is available on loan to growers who supply us their cherry consistently.
Free extension and agronomy
Agronomy support is provided free to farmers.
Transparent, timely, fair
You grow the coffee. We buy it from you. You get paid.
No broker sits in the middle, so the price you agree with us is the price that reaches you. Payment goes straight into your bank account, month by month, on terms you signed for — and a season that goes well is rewarded on top of the agreed price.
- No middlemen
- Paid monthly
- Yearly bonuses
- Performance incentives
- Recognition
A market you can count on
When your coffee is ready, it has a home. Market and payment terms are agreed in writing before the cherry is ripe, so you are not hunting for a buyer in the season.
Recognition for good work
Growers who perform are noticed: incentives on top of the agreed price, a yearly bonus for staying with us through the year, and recognition among the farmers we work with.
What we ask in return
Deliver the full harvest
Full support is for growers who deliver 100% of their cherry harvest to Mara Coffee. It is the condition of the partnership, and it is the same for everyone.
Good management pays from year three
From the third year onwards, good farm management is what turns a coffee tree into higher, steadier yields. That is where the difference shows up.
Our Coffee
The method is decided by the lot, not the label
These are the four processes we run at origin. Which one a lot gets depends on the cherry, the weather and what the buyer wants from it.
Fully Washed
Clean, bright coffee with high acidity and refined flavour profiles.
Honey Processed
Balanced sweetness with a smooth body and fruity flavour notes.
Anaerobic Fermented
Controlled fermentation creating complex specialty profiles.
Natural
Sun-dried cherries produce rich, fruity, full-bodied coffee.
- Varietals
- SL28, SL34, Ruiru 11, Batian, Bourbon
- Growing altitude
- 1,600–2,200 m above sea level
What it tastes like
- Floral
- Tropical fruit
- Red berry
- Honey
- Caramel
- Chocolate
- Winey acidity
- Silky finish
Quality & traceability
From the tree to the lot number
Every lot we sell can be traced back to the coffee it came from, and the cup score sits above 85 on the SCA scale. Grading is run by certified Q-Professionals. This is the chain a lot travels through, and what we record at each step.
- Farm. The coffee is traced back to the farm it was grown on.
- Harvest. Ripe cherry is picked and sorted at the collection point.
- Processing. Washed, honey, anaerobic or natural — the method is recorded.
- Quality. Dried, milled and graded before the lot is offered.
- Export. Green coffee leaves the country with its paperwork attached.
2,500+
Community grower families
300+
Company-owned acres
85+
SCA cup score
1,600–2,200
Metres above sea level
Sustainability
Certified, and then some
Mara Coffee is Rainforest Alliance certified across all the coffee we export. Certification is the floor, not the ceiling — here is what we do beyond it.
Seedlings raised here
Disease-resistant varieties go through our own nursery programme, so a grower can get good stock when a block needs replanting.
Soil and water
Regenerative agriculture, soil health and water conservation — what keeps a coffee farm viable through a bad year.
Room at the table
Making space for young people and women in coffee farming, because the next generation of growers is already on the farms.
Agreed in writing
Growers sign an agreement covering market and payment terms, which lets a farm plan several seasons ahead.
Insights
From the field
Let's talk coffee
Tell us the region, the process and the volume you are looking for, and we will tell you what we have.