DAR ES SALAAM, Jan. 21 -- APPROXIMATELY 90 per cent of Tanzanias coffee output comes from about 320,000 smallholder farmers, each typically managing around 200 coffee trees on small plots of 0.5–2 acres, underscoring the sectors heavy dependence on fragmented, low-scale farming systems with implications for productivity, economies of scale and the provision of extension and market services.

The country produces two main types of coffee: Arabica, which accounts for roughly 60.9 per cent of output, and Robusta, contributing 39.1 per cent. Arabica is grown across Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Tanga, Iringa, Mbeya, Kigoma, Manyara, Mwanza, Katavi, Mara, Njombe, Songwe, Rukwa, Geita and Ruvuma, while Robusta is concentrated in Kagera and Morogor...