Ruto directs Sh100m for Nairobi Coffee Exchange lab

"The clock runs from now. So we count six months from today," Ruto said.

President William Ruto addresses farmers during the Agriculture and Food Security town hall at Jamhuri Park, Nairobi on October 8, 2026./PCS

President William Ruto has directed the government to provide Sh100 million to facilitate the establishment of a world-class quality analysis laboratory at the Nairobi Coffee Exchange within six months.

Ruto directed Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutai Kagwe to facilitate the project during an Agriculture and Food Security town hall at Jamhuri Park, Nairobi, on Thursday.

The laboratory is expected to support the handling and marketing of specialty coffee, including through a proposed special auction for micro-lots of fewer than 10 bags.

The move followed concerns that Kenya's specialty coffee is being traded through a conventional auction system that does not adequately cater for specialty coffee.

Source: The Star