Skip to main content

LARGE SCALE COFFEE PLANT INAUGURATED IN BAMENDA

By Mildred Wung 

The capacity of coffee farmers in the Northwest Region has been boosted thanks to a large scale coffee transformation plant inaugurated by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Gabriel Mbairobe.

Picture: ultra modern coffee machine

The inauguration of the plant worth two hundred million francs took place April 24, 2021 at the regional office of the Northwest Farmers Cooperative Association NWCA. 

Local farmers and agricultural technicians witnessed the installation of the coffee machine that compose of a roasting mill, a cooling mix, a storage tank and destoner and a conveyor which would enable farmers double the production of coffee from one thousand five hundred tons with an increased revenue. Speaking during the inauguration ceremony, the Minister of Agriculture reassured farmers “I am here to assure that the government will continue to support them and the creation of this transformation unit would provide another machine to produce extra coffee and support coffee farmers to increase the production by supplying improved seedlings, fertilisers and pesticides and by supplying funds for the farmers so that they can be assured that coffee is a very important agricultural crop in Cameroon and the Northwest in particular” he said.

At the site of the new coffee plant, the General Manager of NWCA Waindim Timothy made a positive remark “Our farmers would remain firm and focussed to ensure that production is increased” he intimated. Farmers are confident that the new coffee plant will yield more impact as far as coffee farming and consumption is concerned.  


Picture: General Manager of. NWCA 

Nchangwi Hellen who is President of Northwest Cooperative Association, and also a coffee farmer in Bafut underscored the importance of the machine as she disclosed to pressmen the plight previously faced by farmers “formerly we were using a seventy year old machine which does not produce large quantities that other countries have and people were not aware of drinking coffee. They only knew about Nescafe but now that this machinery has come, they have seen it and they know that coffee is not sold only to Europe but it is also transformed so that we can take it in our own locality and we can produce good quality coffee in large quantities”

Picture: Officials at coffee plant inauguration

Given that the coffee plant is coming at a time when some farmers are yet to join NWCA which is consequently causing them to sell coffee by their own initiative where they battle with price instability and incorrect scaling and at a time when other farmers had low spirit in coffee farming given the stress in transformation and distribution, agric technicians have expressed hope that the ultra modern coffee plant would attract farmers into NWCA for a common benefit. 


Comments

Editor's Picks

BAMENDA III COUNCIL EMBARKS ON DEVELOPMENT  BY MILDRED NDUM WUNG KUM In a brainstorming spree, councillors prioritized projects to move the growth of Bamenda III municipality. Roads, bridges and extension of water and electricity are earmarked for accomplishment in the development plans. The agenda was made public in a budgetary and administrative accounts session of the council.    Under the stewardship of Mayor Fongu Cletus, stakeholders of the councilconverged in a hall April 22. Present too were the First Deputy Mayor,- Joseph Koti Tita, the Second Deputy Mayor- Banye Margaret Baye Epse Ndzelent, the Senior Divisional Officer for Mezam- Mooh Simon Emil and the Fon of Nkwen-Azefor III among other dignitaries.  councillors adopted 622,000,000FCFA as the administrative account for the year 2020. It was after a thorough deliberation that councillors agreed to pursue the tarring of a two kilometre road to link PNEU junction and Farmer’s House Nkwen, const...
MENCHUM DIVISION PANTING FOR EDUCATIONAL SALVATION BY MILDRED NDUM WUNG KUM Menchum, one of seven divisions of the Northwest region has in no little way been spared by the prevailing Cameroon Anglophone crisis. With the crisis raging on for four years now,  a number of establishments in the division have shut down. The educationional sector keeps the area a little boosting but at the same time attracts empathy for reasons of teaching apathy. FRONT VIEW OF ADMINIDTRATIVE BLOCK GHS WUM  The Menchum Division, of the Northwest region is in  greivous desperation of education. The situation is worsened by the absence of teachers in schools against an impressive majority of school children in need of knowledge. It is the third week of the second term, 2019/2020 academic year, yet Government High School Wum with an enrollment of about 400 students has a teaching staff of less than 20. The statistics of school attendance in GBHS Wum taken on a day shows  ...
GROWING THREAT AWAKES SECURITY STAKES BY MILDRED NDUM WUNG KUM Cameroon's Northwest region is fortifying stakes in  security prior to growing threats within and out of the region. The recent kidnap of teachers in Bui Division of the region and the massacre of seven children in the neighbouring Southwest Region has put security stakeholders on increased guard. Jolted by these happenings, a security meeting took place at the region's headquarter - Bamenda chaired by Northwest Governor Adolph Lele Lafrique November 3rd 2020. The in camera meeting summoned   senior administrative and security officials of the region. No statement was made to the press after the meeting, however, before the official start of the meeting, Mr Lele Lafrique in a statement to the press once again appealed for civil - military collaboration which he intimated is crucial for stemming insecurity in the Northwest region. "We are appealing to the population to continue organising themselves in vigilant...