“The Russian market consumes instant coffee. Although Russia has traditionally been a tea-drinking country, the coffee market is increasing and we are looking for good suppliers of green coffee for instant coffee production and we need volumes besides instant coffee, the company produces potato chips, baking mixes, and other products.” Pashkiv said.
Uganda’s ambassador to Russia Johnson Agara Olwa called upon Ugandan coffee exporters to sell more coffee in Russia.
“The company has a big supply chain of coffee. They buy from several [coffee-producing] countries, including Uganda through third parties but they now want to buy directly from Ugandan producers and exporters,” he said.
Olwa further extended confidence to Ugandan coffee exporters that Russkiy Produkt, which is located in Kaluga city and Moscow, is a genuine company to work with.
David Katungi, the director of strategy and business development at UCDA, said the dialogue was a result of several engagements between UCDA, Uganda’s foreign missions and the ministry of Foreign Affairs for investments opportunities in the Uganda coffee sub sector.
“This engagement to link the private sector here in Uganda with the business community in Russia and UCDA has a responsibility to facilitate these engagements to promote coffee and look for links in foreign markets,” Katungi said.
Katungi also expressed Uganda’s commitment to coffee production and export through its national coffee roadmap which targets to produce 20 million 60kg bags of coffee annually by 2025.
Katungi adds that there are several opportunities along the coffee value chain including plans to set up a soluble coffee plant in Uganda as well as roasting and other value addition opportunities.
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