It is surprising to know that of all the brands that supply Nigeria with coffee, only one brand sources for raw materials within the country. And as one of the top world producers of cocoa, the country gets to benefit firsthand, less than a tenth of its own produce.
Kaldi Africa Limited has its beverage facility situated at the old Nigerian Foundry in Ilupeju Industrial Estate in the busy city of Lagos, Nigeria. The company is a joint Kenyan-Nigerian enterprise launched on the 30th of May, 2016 and is managed by Dr Nasra Ali who said the company was founded out a need to get a drink of freshly roasted coffee and not the instant type rife in the shelves of most Nigerian retail stores.
Dr Nasra was raised in a Kenyan community that saw to the business of coffee from farms to coffee shops. When she moved to Nigeria with her husband in 2014, she started the company with a mission to roast the finest, hand-selected coffee beans grown in African regions. In addition to coffee, Kaldi Africa Limited also processes tea and cocoa from locally grown leaves and pods.
According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, Nigeria in 2013 ranked fourth as the world’s producer of cocoa. Over ninety percent of the country’s homegrown cocoa is exported. Dr Nasra Ali hopes to make the finest of these products available to Nigerians for consumption and not just for export.
At an average altitude of 1600 metres above sea level lies the Mambilla Plateau of Taraba State; vast and lush, and with the right climate for growing beverage crops. It is from this region that Kaldi Africa gets the raw materials for its home-grown beverages. Raw materials are also sourced from Kenya and Ethiopia.
Kaldi Africa is likely to have great potential in the Nigerian market. The company’s value-added trade of manufacturing, processing and selling its products within the country has started it out on a good foot at a time when the nation is seeking to diversify resources other than oil and gas. The company also partners with hotels, supermarkets, restaurants and international organisations to get its products to consumers. What is more? You can make orders and have your favourite beverage delivered to your home or office. You would be just a call away from freshly packed coffee, tea and cocoa.
Kaldi Africa Limited gets its name from the legendary Ethiopian goatherd who, according to lore, discovered coffee. Today, the name “Kaldi” is synonymous coffee shops and companies around the world. For more information about Kaldi Africa Limited, visit www.kaldiafrica.com.