Uganda is taking its coffee campaign deeper into Europe as the country seeks to convert rapidly growing export volumes into stronger relationships with European buyers, greater origin recognition and a larger share of the continent’s coffee market.
The latest push took Uganda to Warsaw, Poland, where the country showcased its coffee at the three-day Coffee Europe Expo from 15 to 17 September 2026. Ugandan producers and exporters used the event to engage European buyers, roasters, importers and investors around opportunities in sourcing, processing, branding and value addition.
The campaign comes at a time when Uganda's coffee industry is experiencing significant export growth. In the 12 months to April 2026, Uganda exported 8.78 million 60kg bags of coffee worth $2.38 billion, representing a 22% increase in volume and a 23% increase in export value compared with the preceding 12 months.
Europe is central to that expansion. In April 2026, the continent accounted for 52% of Uganda's coffee exports, with Italy and Germany among the country's major European destinations. That gives Uganda an established customer base in Europe but also creates an opportunity to broaden the number of buyers and increase the value captured from the trade.
At Warsaw, the Uganda delegation presented both Arabica and Robusta coffees while highlighting the different origins, growing environments and flavour profiles of Ugandan coffee.
The campaign is part of a wider shift in how Uganda wants its coffee to be positioned internationally. Rather than presenting the country simply as a source of green coffee beans, officials are pushing for greater participation in processing, roasting, branding and other stages of the value chain.
That strategy had already been put on display earlier in 2026 when Uganda launched its first national coffee brand, “Uganda Coffee: It's in Our Nature,” at World of Coffee Brussels. The national brand is intended to give Ugandan coffee a recognisable identity across international buyer engagement, events, digital campaigns and packaging.
The timing is significant because European coffee markets are becoming demanding on issues beyond flavour and price. Traceability, sustainability and compliance are becoming important parts of market access, particularly with the European Union's deforestation requirements. Uganda has identified compliance with the EU Deforestation Regulation as part of its strategy for maintaining and expanding access to European markets.
Uganda is also trying to bring buyers closer to the production end of the value chain. Earlier in the year, German coffee analyst Alexander Branbrandt travelled to Uganda with a delegation of more than 10 German coffee roasters and investors. The delegation visited coffee-growing areas and participated in seminars and training focused on improving coffee quality and marketability. Branbrandt subsequently profiled Ugandan coffee during the Warsaw exhibition.
The emphasis on direct relationships matters because Uganda's export success has not automatically translated into maximum value capture for producers. Exporting larger quantities can generate substantial foreign exchange, but more value remains available when coffee can be differentiated by origin and quality and when producers and exporters develop stronger relationships with roasters, specialty buyers and other downstream businesses.
There are also signs that Ugandan producers are beginning to experiment with more direct routes into European markets. A farmer-led coffee tasting initiative that began in Kampala earlier in 2026 subsequently took Ugandan coffees to buyers in Germany and Austria and generated its first orders from European roasters. While the orders remain relatively small, the initiative illustrates the commercial potential of connecting identifiable farm-level coffees directly with overseas buyers.
For Uganda, therefore, the European campaign is not simply about finding more customers. It is about changing the country's position within a global coffee industry in which the greatest commercial value is often captured further along the chain from processing and roasting to branding, retail and the final cup.
NBF Insight
Uganda is entering Europe with something it did not have at the same scale a few years ago: volume, a national coffee identity and a deliberate strategy for market positioning.
The country's 8.78 million bags and $2.38 billion in exports show that Uganda has already become a major coffee trading power. The next question is how much more value the country can capture from that production.
That makes the Warsaw campaign important beyond the exhibition itself. Building relationships with European roasters and importers, developing recognisable origins, meeting traceability requirements and expanding processing could gradually shift Uganda's coffee proposition from “buy our beans” to “buy Uganda's coffee.”
For farmers and exporters, the commercial opportunity will depend not only on producing more coffee, but on being able to demonstrate where it came from, what makes it different and why a buyer should pay more for it.
