AvailableSpecialty
Tanzania · Kilimanjaro
- Species
- Arabica
- Process
- Fully washed
- Grade
- AB
- Screen
- 15/16
- Crop
- 2025/26
- Quantity
- 2 × 20ft
Citrus · Dark chocolate · Black tea
Grading reference
Tanzania Coffee Grades
Tanzania’s grading vocabulary is close enough to Kenya’s to be confusing and different enough to matter. This page sets out how each Tanzanian grade is produced, where the volume actually sits, and what a buyer should ask for when specifying a Tanzanian parcel.
- Grades
- 10
- Species
- Arabica · Robusta
- Authority
- Tanzania Coffee Board (TCB), with the auction system centred on Moshi
- 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.
Grade
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
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 auction system centred on Moshi and through direct export sales.
| 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 OfferLast reviewed 3 min read
Contract 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 |
Availability
Current Tanzania coffee
Availability moves with the harvest, with milling and with prior commitments. Everything here is confirmed against the current crop on enquiry.
AvailableSpecialty
Tanzania · Mbeya & Songwe
- Species
- Arabica
- Process
- Fully washed
- Grade
- AA
- Screen
- 18+
- Crop
- 2025/26
- Quantity
- 1 × 20ft
Blackcurrant · Cocoa nib · Brown sugar
LimitedSpecialty
Tanzania · Mbinga & Ruvuma
- Species
- Arabica
- Process
- Fully washed
- Grade
- PB
- Screen
- PB 13/14
- Crop
- 2025/26
- Quantity
- 120 bags
Red apple · Molasses · Almond
On contract
Tanzania · Kagera
- Species
- Robusta
- Process
- Natural (dry-processed)
- Grade
- Screen 15 up
- Screen
- 15+
- Crop
- 2025/26
- Quantity
- 2 × 40ft
Quality
How a lot is evaluated before contracting
The grade is assigned at the dry mill. This is what happens to a parcel afterwards, before it is offered and again before it is loaded.
- 01Physical gradePreparation class against the origin’s own system
- 02Screen distributionRetention plus the percentage passing
- 03Defect analysisFull defects per 300 g on a stated weighting table
- 04MoistureRange plus the measurement method and instrument
- 05Water activityWhere the buyer specifies it, for storage stability
- 06DensityBulk density in g/L, for roast planning
- 07Sample roastTo a cupping profile, not a commercial roast
- 08CuppingMultiple cups, against the approved sample
- 09Buyer approvalThe retained sample the shipment is measured against
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is Tanzania AA coffee?
Tanzania AA is the largest flat-bean separation from a washed Arabica outturn, retained above screen 18. It is a size and preparation class produced at the dry mill. It carries no cup guarantee — the profile comes from the region, the cherry selection and the processing, and should be confirmed on the sample.
What does TT mean on a Tanzanian offer?
TT is a density separation. Beans of AA, A or B size that are lighter than the main run are lifted off by gravity table or pneumatic separator and grouped as TT. They generally cup flatter and lighter than the parcel they came from, and are priced accordingly.
Is Tanzanian coffee sold at auction or direct?
Both. The Tanzania Coffee Board auction system centred on Moshi handles a large share of volume, and direct export sales also operate. Which route a given parcel takes affects timing and documentation, so it is worth confirming per contract.
What bag size does Tanzania export in?
60 kg jute is the standard export bag. GrainPro or equivalent hermetic liners are widely available and are normal on specialty separations; smaller 30 kg presentations can be arranged for sample-scale or micro-lot business.
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.