The ManicaPost
Blessing Rwizi Business Correspondent
CHIMANIMANI-BASED baobab coffee manufacturers have appealed to development partners to assist them in securing huge and profitable market for their coffee.
Over the past 10 years, a group of more than 30 women in Zimunda, Mhakwe and Chikukwa areas have ventured into the business which was the brainchild of Chimanimani-headquartered Towards Sustainable Use of Resources Organisation (TSURO) Trust.
Its main aim is to transform livelihoods in the drought prone area through sustainable use of available natural resources. TSURO Trust assisted the farmers with knowledge on how to produce coffee from baobab fruits among other projects.
Baobabs are the fruit of Africa’s ‘Tree of Life’ which is a symbol of resistance, life, and nourishment. The fruit dries on the tree branch, gets harvested and sieved to produce a 100 percent natural and organic powder that is exceptionally nutrient-rich, supporting a wide range of benefit.
Baobabs are honoured for their versatile use in herbal remedies, cosmetic products, and food items. Besides making coffee, the seeds can be cold pressed in order to preserve the natural integrity, and the oil is then pulled from the seeds.
However, Chimanimani coffee producers have been selling their long revered fruit coffee to individuals over the past years. To produce the final product, they soak the baobab fruits to separate pulp from the seeds. The seeds are roasted together with brown sugar to produce a dark colour and then pounded to produce the coffee.
Mrs Tendai Marijeki, one of the coffee producers from Zimunda area, said: “We have been producing baobab coffee and selling it to individuals over the past years. Now we seek more profitable markets. Given a chance, we can produce larger amounts of this type of coffee as long as we get the market since there are plenty of baobab trees in Chimanimani.”
“Baobab coffee is considered to be more nutritional than any other types of coffee. It also has a good taste and some of its health benefits include its ability to boost the immune system, build bone strength, soothe the gastrointestinal system, prevent chronic disease, lower inflammation, reduce blood pressure, and stimulate growth and repair,” she added.
