The 2025/2026 coffee auction season has gone on its mid-year recess until July 2026 with the Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE) reporting one of the strongest performances in recent years.
According to the NCE report, the exchange completed 29 auction sales since the season opened on October 1, 2025, trading a total of 36.93 million kilograms of clean coffee valued at about Sh32.25 billion.
The report indicates that although the current season did not surpass the 38 million kilograms traded during the 2022/2023 season, it delivered far better earnings due to improved global coffee prices and stronger market demand.
The NCE figures show that the average auction price for the season stood at Sh43,780 per 50-kilogram bag, making it the best-performing season in terms of prices over the last five years.
The report paints a picture of a coffee sector that has gradually recovered after years of fluctuating global prices and inconsistent farmer returns.
During the 2021/2022 season, the exchange traded 33.76 million kilograms worth Sh.23.3 billion, with farmers earning an estimated equivalent of about Sh. 85 per kilogram of cherry after deductions.
The following 2022/2023 season recorded the highest traded volume at 38 million kilograms, but lower international coffee prices pushed total earnings down to Sh.19.7 billion.
Farmer returns also dropped sharply to an estimated Sh64 per kilogram of cherry.
According to the report, signs of recovery began emerging in the 2023/2024 season when average auction prices improved to Sh29, 187 per bag, raising farmer earnings to around Sh72 per kilogram.
However, the real turnaround was witnessed in the last two seasons as global coffee prices strengthened significantly.
In the 2024/2025 season, average auction prices rose to about Sh43, 000 per bag, generating nearly Sh28 billion in total earnings and translating to an estimated Sh.106 per kilogram for farmers after deductions.
The report points out that the current 2025/2026 season has continued with the upward momentum.
Based on prevailing conversion ratios, the report estimates that the current auction prices translate to a gross cherry equivalent of about Sh134 per kilogram, or approximately Sh107 after the standard 20 percent deductions for cooperative and marketing expenses.
The report further notes that some cooperatives in coffee-growing counties have already announced cherry payments of up to Sh.150 per kilogram, surpassing the national average estimates.
According to the NCE, these higher payouts have largely been driven by improved coffee grades, better management at factory level, lower operational deductions, certification premiums and favorable market timing.
The exchange also recorded continued dominance of premium coffee grades; AA and AB, which accounted for 24 percent and 38 percent of the total coffee traded respectively.
International buyers remained active throughout the season, with firms such as Ibero Kenya, C. Dormans, Sasini, Louis Dreyfus and Taylor Winch among the major buyers at the auction.
With the NCE now on recess until July, focus is expected to shift to cooperative annual general meetings and payment announcements, where farmers will closely monitor how the strong auction performance translates into final payouts at the factory level.
by Bernard Munyao
