Wastewater treatment system
The Coffee Gardens, a coffee processor located in Sironko in Eastern Uganda sources its Arabica variety coffee cherries from small holder farmers in the community. With a team of 11 key staff, the company processes approximately 300 metric tonnes of coffee cherry, for buyers in the UK, European, US and Asian markets.
The Coffee Gardens uses the wet (full washing) coffee processing method to process its coffee, which involves sorting, pulping, fermenting, soaking, washing, more sorting and drying. Water is sourced from a connection to a nearby mountain spring. However, this method is highly water-intensive, using around 1.8l of fresh water for every kg of coffee cherry, and produces acidic wastewater with small mucilage particles after fermentation.
With great care for the community in which they are based, The Coffee Gardens wanted to introduce a wastewater treatment system to improve the quality of their wastewater that is discharged into the river after processing. In 2022, they set up a new coffee washing station and introduced a 4-chamber bioreactor with a 150,000-litre capacity that has helped them improve the wastewater quality and comply with environmental management regulations. The improvement in wastewater treatment has also helped the company to maintain a stronger bond with the community and the local administration. This has led to an increased interest from new roasters who are increasingly interested in the ecological footprint of both coffee farmers and processing stations.
In addition to wastewater management, the company also saw an opportunity to expand the use of solar energy in their new facility for their lighting, powering equipment and water purification systems. This was a necessity given the lack of grid power and the significant cost, noise and smell associated with using generators.
According to Shakeel Padamsey, one of The Coffee Gardens’ Co-Founders, the support from MARKUP has been invaluable.
“Receiving advice from international experts who have worked on wastewater treatment, composting and other ways to use resources efficiently has given us access to best practices from different parts of the world which we wouldn’t ordinarily have access to. Most importantly, we’ve been able to make gradual improvements and get advice at each stage of the way.”
Looking ahead into 2025, The Coffee Gardens wants to re-design sections of the wastewater treatment system to optimize it, eliminate unpleasant odour for the staff and further improve on the quality of the wastewater especially for those living downstream. Further, the company is exploring using a pico hydropower system to generate power from the adjacent seasonal spring, which will supplement the existing power system during the rainy season when there is limited sun.
Backgrounder
Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) make up most businesses globally, they are estimated to account for about 90 per cent of firms. MSMEs also contribute significantly to global emissions, for example through energy consumption. While GHG emissions attributable to MSMEs vary across geographies, their contribution is significant and ranges between 40 and 60 per cent.
ITC supports businesses to reduce their carbon emission and save on operating costs by helping them to become more resource efficient. Through the Resource Efficiency and Circular Production Coaching Programme, ITC’s Trade and Environment team helps micro, small and medium sized enterprises (MSMEs) to develop strategies to use resources like energy and water more efficiency, and to develop circular business models. The strategies often require a large capital outlay to invest in the right infrastructure underscoring a need to support this business with access to affordable finance.
In 2021, under the Phase I of the Market Access Upgrade (MARKUP I) programme, ITC supported several coffee companies in Uganda to improve their resource efficiency and increase their environmental performance.
