Arabica and Robusta Coffee

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Kenya, an East African nation, produces over 2 million bags of coffee a year and it ranks number *7 in production world wide. Kenya Coffee has a distinct, full bodied flavor with little or no bitterness and a wonderful aroma. Most of Kenya�s Arabica coffee is grown on tiny farms, averaging half an acre in size, north of Nairobi and on the slopes of Mt. Kenya. In the far west portion of Kenya, coffee is grown on the slopes of Mt. Elgon, near the Uganda border, including the Kenya Blue Mountain variety, which came from Jamaica. Experts say the best Kenya beans come from these areas of rich red, loamy soil at an altitude of around ***0 feet. Most coffee is grown by individual farmers on tiny plots of land, averaging half an acre, which dot the landscape. Their efforts have been consistent in producing coffee every year The Coffee Board of Kenya established guidelines on standards for the beans. Coffees are graded after it�s milled; Kenya AA means the largest beans and AB is next in size. The theory is that the larger beans will contain more of the special oils which give coffee its aroma and flavor. While size is important, it is just one factor in determining high quality coffee. A second class system was developed to rate the quality of the beans, ranging from 1 to *0 with Class 1 being the best. This system has rarely been advertised but a coffee rated as Kenya AA, could rank as low as Class 4. There has been an ongoing discussion of branding different beans based on the area where the beans are grown. At present, there are three kinds of brand, Mt. Kenya, Aberdares, and Kenyan Blue Mountain. Until recently, all coffee was sold through an auction system which, most experts in the coffee business, say was effective and brought fair prices to the farmers. All farmers were organized into small, craft oriented, cooperative processing centers. Each day�s harvest was sorted and processed separately into small boutique lots of green coffee beans which were sold individual