From the Soil to the Soul: How Joro Coffee Is Brewing a New Future for Africa

In the quiet highlands of Kenya, where morning mist clings to red soil and coffee cherries glisten under the sun, generations have toiled with hope in their hands. The land is rich.

The beans are exceptional. But for far too long, the stories of the farmers who grow them have gone untold, their sweat unrewarded, their dreams deferred.

It is from this deep truth—and a desire to rewrite it—that Joro Coffee was born.

Joro isn’t just a coffee company. It’s a movement, a mission, and a heartfelt call to action from the heart of Africa to the rest of the world.

Co-founded by Mukurima Muriuki, a second-generation Kenyan coffee farmer now living in Los Angeles, Joro Coffee is the embodiment of a promise: that African coffee—and African farmers—deserve more than admiration.

They deserve fairness. They deserve freedom. They deserve dignity.

Legacy in Every Bean

Mukurima’s story begins not in Los Angeles, but in Kenya, where he was raised by his grandfather—a man whose life was shaped by both colonial injustice and post-independence hope. Under colonial rule, Africans were stripped of land, laboring for settlers with no education or opportunity. But after Uhuru—Swahili for "freedom"—land returned to the hands of African farmers.

He grew up in Kirinyaga County. A lastborn of three, he enjoyed the abundance of compelling stories his grandfather had collected over the years as he savoured the flavourful and fragrant coffee that was a tradition in their home.

Among the stories his grandfather shared with him was the origin and economic development of coffee farming starting way back in the colonial era.

Finally, the land could give back. Coffee farming became a symbol of renewal. But even then, the dream remained incomplete.

“Despite the freedom of independence,” Mukurima recalls, “most African coffee farmers are still shackled by an unfair supply chain. We grow the finest beans in the world, yet we receive the smallest share of the reward. That’s not justice. That’s not Uhuru.”

Joro Coffee was created to complete the story of African liberation—economically, culturally, and environmentally.

A Model Built on Fairness

At Joro, every bean is a promise. The company works only with importers who provide living wages to farmers, rejecting the exploitative models that have long dominated the coffee industry.

This commitment ensures that African farmers—not middlemen or foreign corporations—benefit from their own labor.

This is not charity. It is economic justice.

It is also sustainability. Joro's compostable packaging reflects a deeper belief: that we must be better stewards of the earth—not just for today, but for the generations to come. Every bag of Joro Coffee is a quiet protest against waste and a celebration of circular living.

Mukurima

A Cultural Renaissance in a Coffee Cup

But Joro isn’t only about economics—it’s about culture. The brand draws energy and inspiration from Afrobeats, a musical movement that, like Joro, pulses with African rhythm, resilience, and pride.

The sound of Africa. The taste of Africa. Together, they form Joro’s heartbeat.

“We believe African coffee should be experienced the way Afrobeats is heard—loud, joyful, and unapologetically proud,” says Mukurima.

This philosophy shapes everything Joro does—from how the beans are sourced, roasted, and packaged, to how stories are told, connections are formed, and futures are shaped.

Brewing Joy Beyond the Cup

The Joro journey extends far beyond coffee. Through its Toys for Tots initiative, the company collects and distributes toys to children in Kenya—many of whom have never owned one.

It’s a small act of joy, but it speaks volumes about what Joro stands for: hope, possibility, and shared humanity.

Because at its core, Joro is about giving back—to farmers, to families, to communities, to the land.

Mukurima’s grandfather

Changing Africa, One Cup at a Time

Every cup of Joro Coffee tells a deeper story: of a continent rising, of systems being reimagined, and of Africans reclaiming their narrative—not as laborers, but as leaders.

With every bag sold, a farmer earns a living wage. A child receives a toy. A community gets a little stronger. The earth breathes a little easier.

This is how Joro Coffee is changing Africa—not with noise, but with integrity. Not with speed, but with intention. One step. One cup. One story at a time.