Rwanda, Nova Cafe des Mamans (Washed)

Nova Coffee was founded in 2015 by the wife and husband power duo, Agnes Mukamushinja and Felix Hitayezu. They have been producing coffee as farmers for over 25 years, and now, they support 2880 small holder coffee farmers in their community including 382 female farmers, producing 153 tonnes of specialty grade red bourbon coffee, with plans in place to increase that production to 230 tonnes by 2025.

Nova recognises the power and benefit of enabling women to work in their society. When asked, they say that women are “an integral part of Nova and we benefit hugely from having them as part of the Nova family, with their laughter, energy and passion for producing coffee. But each season, we lose a quarter of these young women from the team because of childcare responsibilities. With little or no income, it is then impossible for these young mothers to keep their children in primary school. This means our young generations are not receiving the education that will lift them out of poverty.”

As a response, Nova have funded the construction of the NOVA Bright Starts Early Childcare Centre, providing a safe place for young children so mothers can work. Each purchase of a Nova coffee contributes funds towards this long term project.

Coffee tasting notes: Red apple, peach & mandarin

Process: Washed