Grading reference
Tanzania Coffee Grades
- Grades
- 10
- Species
- Arabica · Robusta
- Authority
- Tanzania Coffee Board (TCB): licensing, auctions at zonal centres, and registration of direct export contracts
- Bag standard
- 60 kg jute
At a glance
The Tanzania grade ladder
Where each designation sits on the screen scale — and which ones are not size separations at all.
Screen number · 4.8–7.5 mm
- AAArabica
- EArabica
- Robusta FAQRobusta
- AArabica
- ABArabica
- BArabica
- CArabica
- PBArabica
Not size separations
These designations are produced by density separation, defect classification or trade convention rather than by screening, so they do not sit on the scale above.
- TTArabicaLighter-density beans lifted off AA/A/B parcels by gravity table or catador during final preparation.
- UGArabicaResidual parcels that do not meet the preparation standard of the named grades. Sold on explicit defect and screen tolerances.
| Grade | What it encodes | Screen | Species |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA | The largest flat beans retained above screen 18 after milling and screening. A size and preparation class, not a cup class. Most commonly quoted export grade for northern and southern washed Arabica. | Screen 18 and above (≈7.1 mm) | Arabica |
| A | Flat beans retained on screen 17, sitting immediately below AA in the size run. | Screen 17 (≈6.75 mm) | Arabica |
| AB | A combined A and B parcel. Widely used commercially because it is the largest single volume block in a typical outturn. Often the most practical grade for consistent multi-container programmes. | Screen 16–17 | Arabica |
| B | Flat beans retained on screen 16. | Screen 16 (≈6.35 mm) | Arabica |
| C | Smaller flat beans retained on screen 15 and, depending on preparation, screen 14. | Screen 14–15 | Arabica |
| PB | Single rounded seeds formed when only one of the two ovules develops. Separated by shape, not by quality. Roasts differently from flat beans because of its shape and density, which is the practical reason to keep it separate. | Own screen run, typically PB 12–14 | Arabica |
| E | Oversized and often conjoined beans separated above the AA screen. Small volume, uneven shape. | Above screen 18/19 | Arabica |
| TT | Lighter-density beans lifted off AA/A/B parcels by gravity table or catador during final preparation. Density-separated rather than size-separated; usually cups lighter and flatter. | — | Arabica |
| UG | Residual parcels that do not meet the preparation standard of the named grades. Sold on explicit defect and screen tolerances. | — | Arabica |
| Robusta FAQ | Dry-processed Robusta from the Kagera region, contracted on screen and defect tolerances rather than the Arabica auction grades. | Commonly screen 15 and above, or screen 18 for a sized parcel | Robusta |
The distinction that matters
What the grade does not tell you
This is where most green coffee is mis-bought. A grade is a preparation class. Everything below is a separate contract field, and every one of them moves independently of the grade name.
What it does fix
Tanzania grading encodes
- Bean size, as the screen the parcel is retained on
- Bean shape, where peaberry is separated from the flat-bean run
- Density, for the TT separation lifted off the AA/A/B run
- That the parcel met the preparation standard of a named grade
Use the grade to define the physical deliverable. Use the approved sample to define the cup. Both belong in the contract.
What it does not
Specify these separately
- Cup qualityTwo lots at the same grade from the same mill can cup several points apart. Only cupping tells you.
- Defect countA separate count on a defined sample, against a weighting table that differs by origin.
- MoistureA range plus the measurement method. Two meters on one parcel routinely disagree.
- Crop yearNothing in a grade name distinguishes current crop from a parcel that has been in store a year.
- DensityBulk density in g/L, which drives charge temperature and roast planning.
- Water activityStorage stability. Related to moisture but not derivable from it.
- TraceabilityCountry, station or day lot are different claims. A grade fixes none of them.
- Processing methodWashed, natural and honey can all carry the same grade at most origins.
Quick answer
Tanzanian washed Arabica is graded by screen size into AA, A, B and C, with PB separated by shape, E above the AA screen, and TT and UG produced by density separation and residual cleaning. AB is the combined A and B block and is the largest single volume in a typical outturn. Tanzanian Robusta from Kagera is contracted on screen and defect terms rather than through this ladder.
The Tanzanian grade ladder
Grading is carried out at the dry mill after the parchment is hulled, and the resulting classes are the units in which coffee moves through the Tanzania Coffee Board’s auctions — held at zonal centres, not only in Moshi — and through direct export under contracts registered with the Board.
| Grade | Basis | Screen | Where it sits commercially |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA | Size | Screen 18 and above | The headline export grade; attracts the highest differential |
| A | Size | Screen 17 | Often merged into AB rather than sold alone |
| B | Size | Screen 16 | As above |
| AB | Size (A + B combined) | Screen 16–17 | The largest single block; the practical volume grade |
| C | Size | Screen 14–15 | Commercial parcels and blending |
| PB | Shape | Own PB screen run | Separated peaberry, sold as its own line |
| E | Size | Above screen 18/19 | Elephant and conjoined beans; small volume |
| TT | Density | AA/A/B size range | Light beans lifted by gravity table or catador |
| UG | Residual | — | Under Grade; sold on explicit defect and screen tolerances |
AB is a combination, not a size
Unlike AA, which names a single screen block, AB is the A and B fractions blended back together. Its screen distribution therefore depends on how the mill ran the separation, which is why an AB specification benefits from a stated screen range and a permitted percentage passing.
Northern and southern Tanzania are different products
The grade ladder is national; the coffee is not. The northern slopes of Kilimanjaro and Meru and the southern belt around Mbeya, Songwe and Mbinga harvest at different times and cup differently, and a Tanzanian specification that omits the region leaves the most important variable unstated.
| Northern highlands | Southern highlands | |
|---|---|---|
| Core areas | Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Meru | Mbeya, Songwe, Mbinga, Ruvuma |
| Harvest | July–December | June–October |
| Typical altitude | 1,400–1,900 m | 1,400–2,000 m |
| Structure | Firmer acidity, more structured | Rounder, sweeter, softer acidity |
| Common notes | Blackcurrant, citrus, cocoa | Stone fruit, brown sugar, chocolate |
| Farm structure | Smallholder plus estates | Predominantly smallholder via AMCOS |
Peaberry: a Tanzanian speciality with a caveat
Tanzanian peaberry has a long-established market position, and the separation is done carefully. It is worth being precise about what that means: PB is a shape separation, taken from the same cherry as the flat beans around it. The reason to buy it separately is that its rounder geometry and higher density per unit volume make it roast differently — not that it is intrinsically finer coffee.
Read more on the Tanzania Peaberry page, which covers the screen run, typical availability and roasting implications.
Kagera Robusta is contracted differently
Tanzania’s Robusta comes from Kagera, on the western shore of Lake Victoria, and is predominantly dry-processed. It does not travel through the Arabica grade ladder. Contracts are written on screen retention and a defect basis, in the same style as Ugandan Robusta, and the practical specification points are moisture, foreign matter and the black/broken tolerance.
Specify a Tanzanian parcel
Tell us the region, grade, screen and defect basis you need. We will confirm what the current crop supports.
Request Current Crop OfferContract language
Writing a Tanzania specification
The grade names the physical deliverable. These are the fields that have to sit beside it for the contract to be enforceable.
| Field | What to state | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Origin and region | Tanzania, plus the growing area — Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Mbeya | Region drives altitude, harvest timing and cup character more than the grade does |
| Grade | The Tanzania designation — AA, A, AB, B | Fixes the preparation class and the size separation |
| Screen | Retention screen plus the permitted percentage passing | A screen without a tolerance is not a specification — no sizing line is perfect |
| Defects | Maximum full defects per 300 g, and the weighting table | Weighting tables differ by origin, so the number alone is not portable |
| Moisture | Range plus the measurement method and instrument | Two meters on the same parcel routinely disagree |
| Crop year | Explicit, with the harvest period | "Current crop" means different things in different months |
| Cup | Approved sample retained by both parties | The only thing that fixes flavour; the grade does not |
| Packaging | 60 kg jute; GrainPro or equivalent liners on request | Changes the price and the container arithmetic |
| Port and Incoterm | Dar es Salaam or Tanga · FOB, CFR or CIF | Determines where cost and risk transfer |
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is Tanzania AA coffee?
What does TT mean on a Tanzanian offer?
Is Tanzanian coffee sold at auction or direct?
What bag size does Tanzania export in?
Keep reading
Related to Tanzania Coffee Grades
- Coffee Grades ExplainedWhat a green coffee grade encodes and leaves out, with the grading systems of six East African origins side by side.
- Coffee Screen SizesCoffee screen size chart with mm conversion, how sizing tolerances work, what screens 15–18 mean in East African grades, and how bean size affects roasting.
- Kenya Coffee GradesKenya’s grading terminology explained — E, AA, AB, PB, C, TT, T and Mbuni MH/ML — what each separation is, and why bean size does not determine cup quality.
- Tanzania Green CoffeeTanzanian green coffee from the northern and southern highlands plus Kagera Robusta — grades, regions, harvest windows, cup profiles and how to specify a Tanzanian parcel.
- Tanzania AA Green CoffeeTanzania AA green coffee: what the grade is, which regions produce it, what it costs in outturn, and how to write a Tanzania AA specification.
- Tanzania AB Green CoffeeTanzania AB green coffee: the combined A and B block, why it carries most of the volume, and why it is frequently the best value in a Tanzanian offer list.
- Tanzania PeaberryTanzania peaberry: what a peaberry is, how it is separated, why it roasts differently from flat beans, and what to expect in availability and price.
Request an offer
Tell us the Tanzania coffee you need
Grade, screen, defect basis, moisture, crop year, volume and destination. Send what you know and we will confirm what the current crop supports.