Members of KAAS Coffee Farm during the annual gathering at Sendenyu village on December 27. (Morung Photo)
Our Correspondent
Kohima | December 27
Kebentsin Club, Sendenyu, under the banner of Kebentsin Agri & Allied Cooperative Society (KAAS) Ltd, on Saturday celebrated a decade of successful coffee farming at Sendenyu village in Tseminyu district.
The coffee farm, established in 2015, comprises 22 young families from Sendenyu village. It was formed by 25 members with the objective of promoting and encouraging an “honest work culture” among members and the wider society.
Kebentsin Club ventured into coffee farming in 2015 through the initiative of the District Project Officer (DPO), Land Resources Department, Kohima. All land within the farm belongs to the members of the club, representing several clans of Sendenyu village. The land was voluntarily donated by members, and the farm presently covers a compact area of about 25–26 hectares.
According to KAAS Coffee Farm adviser Dr. Gwalozii Thong, all labour-related activities such as jungle clearing, pit digging, sapling plantation, nursery management, and seasonal maintenance are carried out by the members themselves.
Addressing the annual gathering of the club on December 27, Dr. Thong said the Land Resources Department initially supplied 11,000 coffee saplings in 2015. In 2016, a locally prepared nursery, with support from the department, enabled the plantation of approximately 26,000 saplings. The nursery also supplied around 11,600 coffee saplings to neighbouring farmers.
By 2017, the nursery had raised about 70,000 coffee saplings. Of these, 20,000 saplings were planted within the farm, while the remaining were distributed to 15 neighbouring farms.
In 2018, the nursery raised one lakh coffee saplings, Dr. Thong said, adding that Nagaland Chief Minister Dr. Neiphiu Rio had also obtained 50,000 saplings for his coffee farm. In 2019, the nursery raised another 1,30,000 saplings, of which about 17,800 were planted in the Kebentsin coffee farm.
During 2021, the farm raised 1,40,000 coffee saplings, and the registration of Kebentsin Agri & Allied Cooperative Society (KAAS) Ltd was completed. To date, the farm has supplied around 1,80,000 coffee saplings, enabling 45 households to take up coffee farming.
The year-wise production of harvested parchment coffee stands at 100 kg in 2019, 300 kg in 2020, 400 kg in 2021, 480 kg in 2022, 550 kg in 2023, and 650 kg in 2024. KAAS is expecting a good harvest in 2025.
Dr. Thong said the then Chief Secretary of Nagaland, Dr. J. Alam, and the then Commissioner and Secretary, Land Resources Department, Y. Kikheto Sema, had visited the coffee farm a few years ago and extended various forms of support.
The KAAS Coffee Farm expressed gratitude to the Nagaland government, the Land Resources Department, and the Coffee Board of India for their continuous encouragement and handholding. Appreciation was also extended to the Department of Agriculture, Department of New and Renewable Energy, and the Department of Power for their support.
While expressing hope for further assistance, including the establishment of a coffee processing unit in Tseminyu district in the near future, KAAS Coffee Farm members cautioned certain entities against exploiting farmers for personal business interests, warning that such actions could invite blacklisting by the government and legal action.
Earlier, the annual gathering was chaired by KAAS Coffee Farm secretary Njonye Thong, while the welcome address was delivered by KAAS Coffee Farm president Joshua Bukh. A short address was also delivered by Thejangulie Seb. Pastor Shokvulo Khing of Thongsunyu Baptist Church offered prayers for the programme.
At present, the coffee farm has a farmhouse, water reservoir, toilet facilities, water tanks, a pulping machine, fishery ponds, and GIS mapping of the farm area.
