Supporting Farmers in Rwanda
The Bwishaza Goat Project
For every bag sold from selected Bwishaza coffees, £1 goes directly towards funding goats for farmers in Rwanda. Customers can also make a voluntary donation via the cart at checkout – and Horsham Coffee Roaster will match all donations.
In April 2026 we donated £3000 to Bwishaza to fund 77 goats for the co-operative members.
The Bwishaza Goat Project is an initiative created by Horsham Coffee Roaster in partnership with the Bwishaza co-operative in Rwanda.
Ten years! It's hard to believe we've been working with the Bwishaza co-operative in Rwanda for a full decade. Our first visit meant a boat across Lake Kivu and a motorbike taxi to reach the washing station. Today, a tarmacked road takes you right to the entrance! Year after year, Bwishaza has delivered some of the most consistent washed lots we buy, alongside bespoke microlots produced just for us. This year's anaerobic fermented honey is the standout: a coffee that tastes nothing like any other Rwandan we've ever cupped.
Through ongoing conversations with the co-operative over the last couple of years, it became clear that goats could offer meaningful practical value to coffee farming households. In response, we created a scheme that directs money from coffee sales towards funding goats for farmers in Rwanda.
Why goats?
Goats are incredibly important to many farming households in Rwanda. As well as being valuable animals to own, they can provide an additional source of income alongside coffee production. Economically, goats are a key livestock asset for smallholder farmers. They're raised primarily for meat (goat meat, or brochettes, is popular in Rwandan cuisine), and to a lesser extent for milk and skins. Because they're smaller, cheaper, and easier to care for than cattle they are accessible to households that couldn't otherwise afford livestock.
In coffee-growing regions specifically, goats are often integrated into farm systems — providing manure for coffee trees, and supplementary income between harvests.
Coffee is not the only part of day-to-day life for producers. Support that strengthens the wider household economy can have a practical and lasting value.
How the project works
In 2026 we started raising funds two ways: direct donations, and £1 from select bags of Bwishaza coffee sold. Together, that came to £523. We topped it up to £3,000, hoping to fund 60 goats. Then Bosco, our friend on the ground in Rwanda, worked his magic with a local supplier and came back with 77 goats.
With around 600 members in the co-operative, recipients were chosen by random draw at a community meeting. Next year we'll run it again — with previous recipients stepping aside — and the year after that, and the year after. The goal is straightforward: a goat for every member.
That's why we're keeping this going beyond a one-off campaign. You'll find donation options at checkout, and we'll continue contributing £1 from the sale of select Rwandan coffees.
Thank you. Genuinely. The ten-year partnership, the project, the coffees we get to put in your hands — none of it happens without the people drinking the coffee at the other end. Here's to the next ten.
You can continue to support this initiative via the Bwishaza Anaerobic Honey and the Bwishaza Natural process lot from Rwanda.
Support The Project
Bwishaza Anaerobic Honey
This stunning 88 point scoring coffee. Created using a unique two stage anaerobic fermentation, which has resulted in a fantastic honey processed coffee with tasting notes that pineapple, tamarind and grapefruit.
support the project
Bwishaza Natural
A natural processed Red Bourbon varietal coffee. Created by carefully sorting hand harvested cherry, floating in water to remove defects and drying in raised tables. Tasting notes include orange, strawberry and a caramel like sweetness.
Built through relationship
The Bwishaza Goat Project is not a broad donation campaign or a generic fundraising add-on. It is something we have created directly with the Bwishaza co-operative, based on ongoing dialogue and shared understanding.
For us, that matters. We believe the best initiatives are the ones that come from listening carefully and responding in ways that are useful, specific and grounded in real relationships.
Take a look at life around Bwishaza co-operative in the slideshow below. You can also read about Bwishaza at the dedicated producer page.
