Green coffee
Robusta Green Coffee
- Primary origins
- Uganda · Tanzania
- Specification
- Screen 12–18 · FAQ
- Applications
- Roasting · Blending · Soluble
Quick answer
We supply natural Robusta from Uganda and from Kagera in Tanzania, screen-graded — 18, 17, 15, 14 and 12 — or as unsized FAQ parcels. Robusta is contracted on screen, defect basis, moisture ceiling and foreign matter limit rather than on a letter grade.
The two origins
| Uganda | Tanzania (Kagera) | |
|---|---|---|
| Scale | One of Africa’s largest Robusta origins | Smaller, regionally concentrated |
| Growing area | Lake Victoria basin, Masaka, central | Kagera, western Lake Victoria shore |
| Altitude | 900–1,500 m | 1,000–1,500 m |
| Processing | Natural | Natural |
| Grading | Screen 18/17/15/14/12, plus FAQ | Screen and defect terms |
| Harvest | Main Nov–Feb, fly crop Apr–Jul | May–Aug |
| Port | Mombasa or Dar es Salaam | Dar es Salaam |
| Availability | Near year-round from two cycles | Seasonal |
Robusta is indigenous to the Lake Victoria basin, which is worth knowing: Uganda is not a country that adopted Robusta, it is part of the species’ natural range.
Screen grades
| Grade | Screen | mm | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Screen 18 | 18/64" | 7.14 | Where bean size matters to the roast or to a visual blend match |
| Screen 17 | 17/64" | 6.75 | Intermediate; useful when 18 is scarce or expensive |
| Screen 15 | 15/64" | 5.95 | The volume workhorse — commercial blends and soluble |
| Screen 14 | 14/64" | 5.56 | Price-led blending and extraction |
| Screen 12 | 12/64" | 4.76 | Smallest commercial size; mostly soluble |
| FAQ | Unsized | — | Sold against defect and moisture terms; specify everything explicitly |
Writing a Robusta contract
Robusta contracts live or die on the defect and moisture clauses, because the screen constrains neither.
- Screen
- Retention screen plus permitted percentage passing
- Defects
- Maximum total, with black and broken beans capped separately
- Moisture
- Ceiling plus method — commonly contracted around 12–13%
- Foreign matter
- Maximum, with stones counted separately
- Crop year
- Explicit, and which cycle — main or fly crop
- Packaging
- 60 kg jute, or bulk container liner for volume programmes
- Certification
- Where required — 4C is common on commercial Robusta
- Shipment pattern
- For programmes, the monthly or quarterly split
FAQ needs the most specification, not the least
Fair Average Quality means unsized and sold against agreed terms. Because there is no screen constraining it, everything else has to be explicit — defect basis, moisture, foreign matter, and what the parcel may not contain.
What well-prepared Robusta actually tastes like
Robusta’s reputation is largely a processing artefact. The species is higher in chlorogenic acids and caffeine, which contributes bitterness and body — but a carefully picked, properly dried, well-sorted Robusta is clean, sweet and heavy-bodied, without the rubber and burnt-tyre character associated with careless preparation.
The practical implication for a buyer is that Robusta rewards specification and supplier selection more than most Arabica does, because the range between careless and careful is so wide.
Robusta programmes
Multi-container Robusta is contracted on a programme basis. Tell us the annual volume, screen and shipment pattern.
Request Current Crop OfferCurrent crop
Current Robusta Coffee
Availability is confirmed on enquiry
We do not publish a standing stock list for Robusta. What can be offered depends on the harvest in progress, what has been milled and what is already committed, so each offer is confirmed against the current crop when you ask — with the lot’s specification and the date its position was checked.
For when each origin typically ships, see the coffee crop calendar.
Quality
How we evaluate Robusta
Every parcel is assessed on the same sequence before it is offered, and again before it is loaded. What is reported for a given lot depends on what the buyer specifies.
- 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
Export
Packaging and export
Packaging is specified at contract stage rather than requested afterwards, because it changes both the price and the container arithmetic. Four of our six origins are landlocked, which makes the inland leg the largest single source of schedule variance — shipment windows are built around port arrival, not mill readiness.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What screen should I buy for an espresso blend?
Is Ugandan Robusta available year-round?
What moisture should Robusta be contracted at?
Can Robusta be shipped in bulk rather than bags?
Keep reading
Related technical guides
The reference material behind the specification fields on this page.
Request an offer
Tell us the Robusta you need
Origin, region, process, grade, screen, moisture, defect tolerance, crop year and packaging. Send what you know and we will confirm what each origin realistically supports for the current crop.