Coffee is one of Tanzania’s main exports and an important income for hundreds of thousands of small farmers. Most is high-grown arabica with a bright, fruity character. The country is especially known for its peaberry beans.
Where coffee grows
| Region | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Kilimanjaro and Arusha | Arabica | The oldest growing area, farmed by the Chagga and on estates around Mount Meru |
| Southern Highlands (Mbeya, Songwe, Ruvuma) | Arabica | Now the largest arabica producer |
| Kagera, near Lake Victoria | Robusta | Grown by the Haya, with a long history |
What is peaberry?
A coffee cherry usually holds two beans with flat sides facing each other. In about 5% of cherries, only one round bean develops: a peaberry. Many people believe peaberries roast more evenly and taste brighter. Tanzanian peaberry is sold around the world.
Flavour
Good Tanzanian arabica is often described as lively and medium-bodied, with notes of citrus, berries and sometimes chocolate.
History
The Haya grew robusta long before colonial times. Missionaries brought arabica to Kilimanjaro in the 1890s, and in 1925 Chagga farmers formed one of Africa’s first coffee cooperatives. Read about the Chagga people.
Coffee tours
Around Moshi and Arusha, you can visit small farms and estates. On a Chagga coffee tour in a village such as Materuni, you pick ripe cherries, then hull, roast and grind the beans by hand, singing as you pound them, before drinking a fresh cup. It is included in our Machame Route climb.
Bring a bag home. Read souvenirs from Tanzania.
Frequently asked questions
Coffee from cherries that develop a single round bean instead of two. About 5% of beans are peaberries.
Arabica on Kilimanjaro, around Arusha and in the Southern Highlands; robusta in Kagera near Lake Victoria.
Yes. Villages such as Materuni near Moshi offer tours where you roast and brew coffee the traditional way.
