Kirinyaga Rungeto

Perched high in the southern foothills of Mount Kenya on rich, red volcanic soil, the areas surrounding the Kii factory are ideal for producing some of Kenya's finest coffee. Farmers in these fertile foothills typically cultivate around 250 coffee trees on half-acre plots and deliver their harvests to the Kii factory. This factory is one of three managed by the Rungeto Farmers’ Cooperative Society (FCS), a smaller cooperative renowned for its quality processing and meticulous attention to detail.

Rungeto’s dedication has earned it a reputation for producing exceptional coffee and maintaining some of the cleanest, best-organized factories in Kenya. At the Kii factory, only the ripest cherries are accepted. Additional hand sorting and floating remove less dense and damaged beans before the coffee is depulped, fermented, and washed. After washing, the coffee is soaked in fresh water for extended periods to solidify its hallmark Kenyan profiles.

The coffee is then dried over two weeks on raised beds, carefully constructed to ensure proper air circulation and temperature control. When milled for export, the green beans are sorted by screen size and graded accordingly: larger beans (17/18 screen) are labeled AA, 15/16 screen beans are labeled AB, and round peaberry beans are labeled PB.