Tanzania Coffee Board to open mobile shops

The mobile coffee shops will be fitted with modern equipment for simple preparation of caffeinated drinks.

These will include Cappuccino, Coffee Latte, Americano and Espresso and will be available to consumers anywhere they need.

This was revealed here at the weekend by TCB director of advocacy and quality control, Frank Mlay during a media brief.

According to him, the move is also aimed at increasing the domestic market for locally produced coffee and reducing dependency on the foreign market.

He said over 90 percent of coffee grown in Tanzania is produced for the export market which is not a drawback, though.

However, the official challenged stakeholders to identify the suitable areas for the mobile coffee shops to operate.

"The idea is to hawk coffee the way Ice Cream is hawked in the streets but in a decent and hygienic way,” he pointed out.

According to Mr. Mlay, the first coffee shops under the programme will be set up during the next financial year 2023/24.

"Investors must have modern equipment for preparing caffeinated drinks. We are targeting the youth to enable them to make an income,” he added.

Before the programme gets on, TCB will train those willing to open and operate the coffee mobile shops.

He further added that among the areas where such shops can successfully be operated are at the prime zones of the cities and campuses of higher learning institutions.

The idea to open such mobile shops was also to expunge the notion that coffee was only consumed in high end restaurants and by the well-to-do.

A principal technology promotion officer with Tanzania Coffee Research Institute (TaCRI) Dr Jeremiah Magessa rooted for increased awareness on coffee drinking.

Neither TCB nor TaCRI officials could not hint where the first coffee mobile shops would be established.

However, industry players point to Moshi - the seat of both organizations - and Arusha as the most probable sites for the programme's take off.

Efforts by TCB and other stakeholders to promote consumption of the stimulant (coffee) have been underway for years.

For instance in 2021, the state-owned board said coffee drinking by then stood at only five percent.

Tanzania produced 73,207 tonnes of coffee beans during the 2021 season, of which 4,029 will be for the domestic market.

Globally October 1st of each year has been set as an international coffee drinking day which Tanzania observed for the first time in 2021.

Coffee is said to have some health benefits to drinkers with studies indicating long term consumption reduces the risk of some diseases.