Increase and improve coffee production The Usambara Cooperative Union (UCU) is a second level organisation that commercialises tea and fair trade-certified, washed Arabica coffee in the Northern part of Tanzania (Usambara mountain region). UCU was founded on 5 October 1994, by three primary societies comprising of some six hundred farmers. In the course of that same year, more joined to a total of twelve societies to participate in their first coffee harvest which started in July of 1995.

Currently, tea represents approximately 20% of sales, coffee 80%. In addition, the Union has its own ‘projects’ or ‘departments’, serving to get more income and to increase food security for its members. The profit from these projects is used to capitalize the cooperative and for depreciation of vehicles. 
1.	Trees Department (for fire wood), previously grown by the Tea Authority for processing factory, now sold to a Tanga textile factory. It is grown on a farm (Kwehangala) which is property of the Union; 
2.	Maize Department (for consumption of its members) which is bought from other small farmers, stocked and sold to individual farmers upon request through the primary societies when there is shortage of food;
3.	Transport Department (of own coffee and leased to individual vegetable traders).

Due to the negligence of coffee plantations during the coffee crisis of the late nineties to beginning of the year 2000, when coffee reached rock bottom prices, lack of good fertilizer and renovation of plantations, productivity fell from 1 mln kilos ten years ago to about 200 thousand kilos now. Last year a new Fair trade exporter, Mambo Coffee was found, boosting sales a bit, but structural problems such as poor productivity and quality will continue to plague the Union if no action is taken.
Considering the global market opportunities for double certified (Fair Trade-Organic or FTO) coffee (confirmed by UCU’s client/exporter), this project focusses on a pro-active approach to rapidly increase volume and quality of the coffee.

As the production is decreasing (10 years ago about 1 million kilo, nowadays about 250,000 kilo) UCU is stimulating their farmers to replace the old plants. However, the current efforts are negligible in trying to recuperate the 1 million kilo; even though UCU provides seedlings for Tsh 500 (with a subsidy of 50%), only 3.000 seedlings were produced last year. There is simply no interest in the plants by the farmers. Even though there is credit-facility (farmers who cannot afford to pay for plants up front will get the cost deducted from their final payment) farmers are very reluctant to invest. This could be caused by the insecurity of the pay-off that farmers will get when investing: therefore UCU should show farmers the benefits of renewing plantations in conjunction with a compost program. There is a serious lack of information and knowledge among farmers, and UCU does not have the evidence based studies to convince farmers they should invest and what they can gain. 

This information-gap facilitates the intervention of ‘middlemen’ and ‘local buyers’ that buy the coffee at a reduced rate and pay the full amount straight away. Especially younger persons are not willing to wait for a payment in two phases: at harvest time and after UCU is paid by the exporter. When farmers are more aware of the value they would be able to get for their coffee if applying proper agricultural practices in combination with organic and fair trade certification, they would likely except a payment in two terms.  
The transfer of information / knowledge is a process which takes time. A first step is a visit to other (successful) organic farms in the region, such as KNCU, and by inducement into the practice of compost-manufacturing by the most motivated farmers. They can spread this knowledge (and their success stories) to other members. 

Farmers are in need of natural fertilizer. If they don’t have their own cattle, they don’t know how to obtain it. The coop should be able to assist them. An organic compost program can be set-up which is accessible for all farmers. 
Currently, small pulping machines, some even handmade (!), are used for the processing of coffee at farm-level, resulting in poor quality. A Central Pulping Unit would therefore be a great improvement.

To rapidly increase volume and quality the following activities are planned:

First of all training and implementation of an effective compost program, in order to increase quality and volume, in tandem with organic certification, which will increase the sales price. Contacts with entities that could provide this technical expertise have already been established. 

Second, nurseries at village level are necessary to replace old coffee trees. A (technical & cost-benefit) feasibility study (by local university students) will be carried out on how to most effectively implement such a project and make it successful with farmers who are hesitant to invest in their farms. UCU will contact a local university for candidates.

Third, a (technical & cost-benefit) feasibility study will be carried out to assess the implementation (costs and benefits) of a Central Pulping Unit (CPU), which can dramatically improve the processing of the coffee cherries to the standard of export quality.  An additional advantage of having a CPU is that also farmers without access to (small) pulping machines could deliver coffee (in cherry).  

Fourth, UCU needs to be strengthened in its human resources with Field Officers in order to implement the programs and train farmers with long-lasting impact. UCU’s financial staff and board need (further) training in financial management. UCU is taking steps to address this. Field Officers will be financed from profits from sales of coffee or as an investment by the Union in order to improve quality and sales and thus have the investment in the officers be ‘paid back’. 

The four components listed above (compost, nurseries, CPU, training) will be worked out in a Strategic Plan as well as a Business Plan, which will not only serve for UCU internally to have a clear direction, but will also serve as a tool to attract potentially necessary capital for the implementation and up-scaling of above activities. The business plan should detail what investment is needed in order to get UCU back to its 1 mln kg production, of which 80% is export quality, under double certification (or similar target).

Increase volume and quality of coffee through an effective compost programme, improved nurseries and improved processing of the coffee.