High on the slopes of Mt. Elgon, in the heartlands of Trans Nzoia, deep in the Great Rift Valley of Kenya, the air is crisp and the soil is a deep, volcanic red. This is where Sakami Coffee lives. But if you walk through our rows coffee trees, you’ll see that we aren’t just growing cherries. We are growing a new standard for Kenyan coffee; one defined by transparency, female empowerment, and an obsession with quality that starts long before the roast.
It all started some 20 years ago in the quiet valley of Berbeton, Trans Nzoia county. Back then, the soil held a dream, but the land was empty.
What is now the pride of the region, Sakami Ranches, didn’t appear overnight. Its founders, Gloria and Jarmo Gummerus, built this tree by tree. Behind the lush green canopy of today lie two decades of sleepless nights, long and tiresome days, and weeks filled with the kind of stress that only a farmer truly understands.
From Struggle to Transformation
The transformation wasn’t just about growing trees; it was about changing a philosophy. The path to becoming one of the first organic coffee farms in the region was the “irregular” path. It was the harder choice.
While others looked for shortcuts in chemicals and industrial speed, we looked to the soil. A path that respected the ecosystem of Mt. Elgon, opting for regenerative cycles, worm-farm filtration, and natural harmony. An idea that if you treat the earth with respect, the rewards would be tenfold.
Indeed it was true and the quality of the cup increased each successive year turning Sakami into and international phenomenon captivating hearts and taste-buds to this day.
From Sakami To Kigeni
All this did not go unseen by the next generation, raised in the shade of the coffee trees. We watched the “long and tiresome days” turn into a flourishing landscape. We saw that “doing it wrong” for the sake of the soil eventually led to doing it right for the people.
With us we carry on the legacy forth more ambitious than ever. To revolutionize the coffee industry not only in Kenya but the world. Dismantling the barriers between farmers and consumers and empowering the people truly responsible for every single cup.
Kigeni: A Legacy in Motion
This is where Kigeni Sakami truly begins. It is the bridge between the struggle of the founders and the dreams of the youth.
When we transition from Sakami to Kigeni, we are moving from the work to the result. Kigeni is the premium expression of everything the next generation has witnessed
The Final Pour
As the next generation steps into the sunlight, they carry the lessons learned and the spirit forward. We know that quality is a choice, that empowerment is a responsibility, and that a dream planted twenty years ago can eventually change the world—one cup at a time.
