AvailableSpecialty
Tanzania · Kilimanjaro
- Species
- Arabica
- Process
- Fully washed
- Grade
- AB
- Screen
- 15/16
- Crop
- 2025/26
- Quantity
- 2 × 20ft
Citrus · Dark chocolate · Black tea
Tanzania · Growing region
Kilimanjaro Coffee
Kilimanjaro is the historic heart of Tanzanian Arabica and the area most associated with the origin internationally. This page covers what the region actually produces.
- Species
- Arabica · Robusta
- Preparation
- Fully washed
- Harvest
- July–December
Quick answer
Kilimanjaro coffee is washed Arabica grown on the mountain’s southern slopes between roughly 1,400 and 1,900 m, harvested July to December. Smallholder plots served by long-established cooperative unions dominate, and the cup is characteristically structured: blackcurrant, citrus and cocoa.
Contract on: region · grade · screen · process · crop · moisture · defect tolerance · cup approval.
Request current kilimanjaro coffeeThe growing area
Coffee grows on the mountain’s southern and south-eastern slopes, in the volcanic soils above the plains. Altitude runs from roughly 1,400 m up to around 1,900 m, with the higher plots picking latest. Rainfall is reliable and the diurnal temperature range at altitude slows cherry maturation — the mechanism behind the region’s bean density.
Plots are typically small, frequently intercropped with bananas, and organised around cooperative societies with a long institutional history. Moshi, at the foot of the mountain, is the centre of the dry milling and auction infrastructure for the whole country.
Varieties and processing
Bourbon and Kent dominate older plantings, with newer TaCRI selections increasingly present. Processing is fully washed: pulping, fermentation, washing and drying in parchment, with cherry delivered to cooperative pulperies.
Harvest and availability
- Flowering
- October–December
- Harvest
- July–December, with higher plots latest
- Milling
- September–March
- Export window
- September through to the following June
- Port
- Dar es Salaam, occasionally Tanga
See the Tanzania crop calendar for the northern and southern cycles side by side.
The cup
Kilimanjaro lots are typically firmer and more structured than southern Tanzanian coffee: blackcurrant and citrus acidity over a cocoa base, with a medium to full body. Well-separated lots from higher plots can be notably clean and long.
The full grade ladder is produced here — AA, A, AB, B, C, PB — so the region and the grade are independent specifications and both belong in the contract.
Kilimanjaro enquiries
Tell us the grade and volume. We will confirm what the current crop supports, with the cooperative and pulpery identified.
Request Current Crop OfferLast reviewed 2 min read
Availability
Current Kilimanjaro Coffee
Availability moves with the harvest, with milling and with prior commitments. Everything here is confirmed against the current crop on enquiry.
Quality
Quality evaluation
Every parcel runs 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
Packing and export
- Ports of loading
- Dar es Salaam, Tanga
- Bag standard
- 60 kg jute; GrainPro or equivalent liners on request
- Export window
- August through to the following June, peaking October–March
- Incoterms
- FOB · CFR · CIF
Compare
Against the other East African origins
Grade designations do not translate between origins, and harvest windows barely overlap. This is how the region compares at a glance.
| Origin | Species | Main preparation | Representative grades | Harvest | Ports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uganda | Robusta · Arabica | Natural (Robusta) · Washed Arabica (WUGAR) | Screen 18 · Screen 17 · Screen 15 · FAQ | Robusta main crop November–February with a fly crop April–July; Elgon Arabica October–February | Mombasa (Northern Corridor) · Dar es Salaam (Central Corridor) |
| Kenya | Arabica | Fully washed with soak · Mbuni (natural) | E · AA · AB · PB | Main crop October–December; early (fly) crop May–July | Mombasa |
| Ethiopia | Arabica | Fully washed · Natural (sun-dried) | Grade 1 · Grade 2 · Grade 3 · Grade 4 | October–January, varying by region and altitude | Djibouti (primary transit port) |
| Rwanda | Arabica | Fully washed · Natural (growing) | Grade 1 (fully washed) · Grade 2 · Screen 15+ · Screen 16+ | March–July, with the peak in April and May | Mombasa (Northern Corridor) · Dar es Salaam (Central Corridor) |
| Burundi | Arabica | Fully washed with soak · Natural (limited) | Grade A · Grade B · Screen 15+ · Screen 16+ | March–July | Dar es Salaam (Central Corridor) · Mombasa (Northern Corridor) |
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What altitude is Kilimanjaro coffee grown at?
Roughly 1,400 to 1,900 m on the mountain’s southern and south-eastern slopes, with higher plots harvesting latest in the season.
When is Kilimanjaro coffee harvested?
July to December, later than the southern Tanzanian belt. Export runs from September through to the following June.
How does Kilimanjaro coffee differ from Mbeya?
Kilimanjaro is firmer and more structured — blackcurrant, citrus, cocoa. Mbeya and the southern belt lean sweeter and rounder, with stone fruit and brown sugar over softer acidity. The south also harvests earlier and produces more volume.
Request an offer
Tell us the Tanzania coffee you need
Region, process, grade, screen, moisture, defect tolerance, crop year, packaging and destination. Send what you know and we will confirm what Tanzania realistically supports for the current crop.