Rwanda

Rwanda's coffee sector was rebuilt after 1994 around a network of washing stations that let around 400,000 smallholders, most farming under a quarter hectare, sell cherry for fully washed processing. Red Bourbon dominates. The first Cup of Excellence was held in 2008, and a 2023 end to zoning lets stations buy cherry across regions.

Arabica

Production 2026/27
350kbags21k t · USDA PSD
Exports 2026/27
350kbags100% of the harvest
Arabica share
100%
World rank
26of 400.2% of origin output
Area harvested 2024
15khaFAOSTAT
Altitude
not published

Production and exports

60 kg bags · USDA PSD market years
0100k200k300k400k500k201020122014201620182020202220242026Production350kExports350k
0100k200k300k400k500k’10’20Production350kExports350k

Market years 2010/11 to 2026/27; the last year is USDA's current estimate. Domestic use is PSD's domestic consumption line.

Area harvested, hectares · FAOSTAT

10k20k30k40k50k60k’10’15’20Area15k

FAOSTAT crops and livestock products, item green coffee (CC BY 4.0). Values flagged as estimates by FAO are included as published.

Where the coffee goes

Supply and use
USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Production, Supply and Distribution (PSD), market years. Supply on the left equals use on the right.
Stocks carried in0
Production350k
Imports0
Exports350k
Domestic use0
Stocks carried out0
Share of the harvest exported100%
Rank among producing origins by exports24 of 37

Where the exports go is not published here. Shipments by destination, including US imports from Rwanda, come from USITC DataWeb and the Census trade API, which need credentials we do not hold yet.

Harvest

Harvest calendar for every origin
  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

Main cropTypical US arrival

  • Whole country · main cropMar–Jul · US Oct–Dec

    Cafe Imports March-June with September-December arrivals; Mercanta April-July with arrivals late October-January.

Growing regions

4 regions

Varieties, processing and grading

Main varieties

BourbonMibiriziJacksonCaturraCatuaí

Common processing

Washed (wet, fully washed)Natural (dry process)Honey process (yellow, red, black)

Export grading

Rwanda and Burundi screen grades

ICO certifying agent: National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB)

Character and protected names

Flavour tendencies

Rwandan washed Bourbons are typically bright and juicy with red-fruit, citrus and floral notes, but buyers watch for the 'potato defect', which can taint individual beans.

General tendencies from importer origin notes, not a promise about any lot. The claims behind them are listed with their sources at the foot of the page.

Geographical indications and protected names

None recorded for Rwanda.