Uganda: European Roasters' Resistance to Robusta Tests Uganda's Coffee Value Addition Drive

Uganda’s push to add value through exports is running into resistance from some European roasters, who say they don’t know how to roast Robusta. Tom Kalyesubula, founder of Little Farms and a Ugandan coffee farmer, said the reluctance is rooted in a technical knowledge gap, not consumer demand. Speaking during a coffee roasting and brewing masterclass organized with the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), Nonda Coffee and Little Farms, he argued that Europeans already encounter Robusta via blends served in cafes, including coffees sourced from Uganda. Kalyesubula said Uganda can scale that exposure by improving buyers’ understanding and training local roasting skills, noting smallholders produce about 80% of the coffee.