Equatoria Coffee
Equatoria is a coffee farm and producer that operates in Nzara region of Western Equatoria, South Sudan.
Having begun their project to cultivate and distribute coffee in 2018, Equatoria looks to revitalise the coffee industry in South Sudan, having already set up a model farm as well as assisting over 1500 smallholders in their own operations.
About Equatoria
You don’t hear about South Sudan as a coffee producing country, but the trees have been growing wild there for as far back as records go. It’s also one of the few places where you can find the coffee species Exclesa.
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Primarily a producer of teak wood, Equatoria began looking at coffee as an additional revenue stream because the 30 year growth period of teak doesn't generate a consistent enough source of income for the smallholder farmers that they work with.
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After experimenting with different varietals, Equatoria began distributing Robusta and Excelsa seedlings in 2020. By 2025, they had 82 hectares of coffee planted on their own farm, and a further 720 hectares planted across out outgrowers in the Nzara and Yambio regions.
Equatoria facts and figures
Region
Nzara County
Latitude
4.63772577705895
Longitude
28.26887080417257
Farming Altitude
600 m.a.s.l
Farming area
82 ha at Equatoria, with a further 720 ha from small holders.
Partner farmers
Approx. 1700
Species
Robusta, Excelsa
Established
2020
The history of coffee in South Sudan
The wild-growing Arabica trees of South Sudan (found on the high elevation Boma Plateau) were first recorded in 1929, and though thought to be spread from neighbouring Ethiopia, were verified as genetically distinct in 2021, making South Sudan an origin of Arabica coffee.
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Additionally, Excelsa coffee is known to grow natively in the country, and Equatoria’s cultivation of the species caught the attention of Dr Aaron Davis, Head of Coffee Research at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Taking samples from the Excelsa grown at Equatoria, Dr Davis was able to identify them as descendants of South Sudan’s indigenous Excelsa, first recorded back in 1919.
