The Nairobi Coffee Exchange achieved KSh 41.63 billion in sales during the 2025/2026 coffee year, marking a significant increase of about KSh 6 billion compared to the KSh 35.6 billion recorded in the previous season. This growth was driven by 770,034 bags, or approximately 47 million kilogrammes of coffee, traded between October 1, 2025, and September 30, 2026. The exchange attributed the stronger result to better prices and firmer demand throughout much of the trading period.
In comparison, the 2024/2025 season saw 673,844 bags sold. By May, cumulative sales had reached KSh 32.25 billion on 36.93 million kilogrammes, at an average of KSh 43,780 per 50-kilogramme bag. The season concluded with Sale 42 on September 29, 2026, where 17,765 bags fetched KSh 841.3 million. The average price in that final auction was KSh 38,140 per 50-kilogramme bag, or approximately KSh 762 per kilogramme of clean coffee.
A total of eighteen brokers marketed coffee during the year, according to NCE Chief Executive Officer Lisper Ndung’u. Alliance Berries Limited handled the largest share, with 222,329 bags or about 29 percent of the coffee traded. The New Kenya Planters’ Cooperative Union followed with 137,284 bags, accounting for about 18 percent. Together, the two brokers accounted for roughly 61 percent of the season’s volume.
Other notable brokers included Kipkelion, which marketed 58,356 bags, CEBBA with 40,789 bags, and Minnesota with 30,405 bags. Regionally, Meru sold 21,786 bags worth KSh 23.8 million, Mt Elgon 15,334 bags worth KSh 17.9 million, and Murang’a growers 12,476 bags valued at KSh 13.3 million.
National statistics indicate higher auction prices over the past two years. Kenya’s average coffee auction price rose to USD7.21 per kilogramme in 2025 from USD4.90 in 2024, according to Kenya National Bureau of Statistics data cited in the report. This upward trend suggests a positive outlook for the industry.
Coffee Board of Kenya Chairman Henry Kinyua expressed optimism that prices will hold up in the 2026/2027 coffee year, which began on October 1. He emphasized the importance of adherence to recommended farming practices to ensure that farmers continue producing high-quality beans capable of attracting premium prices in the international market.
The auction remains a central channel for marketing coffee from cooperative societies and estates, with quality, origin, and grading among the factors that determine the prices farmers receive. However, the NCE report did not provide a breakdown of how the KSh 41.63 billion was shared among farmers, brokers, and other players in the value chain.
Key points
- The Nairobi Coffee Exchange achieved KSh 41.63 billion in sales during the 2025/2026 coffee year.
- The growth in sales was driven by better prices and firmer demand throughout much of the trading period.
- Eighteen brokers marketed coffee during the year, with Alliance Berries Limited handling the largest share.
