Liberia's Own BEAN

Taking on the Country's First Roastery

Building the Market Before the Harvest

Universal Outreach has always approached economic development the same way.

First build the market.

Then help people participate in it.

It is the same philosophy that led the organization to spend three years developing Liberia Pure before training its first beekeepers. Training only creates opportunity if someone is ready to buy what people produce.

Coffee is following the same path.

Last year, four generous donor families invested in the construction of Liberia's first dedicated coffee roasting facility. While Liberia Pure secured the commercial roasting equipment, construction of the building began in December and was completed just in time for the roaster to be installed before coffee specialist Rodrigo Chávez arrived in Liberia.

For several weeks, Rodrigo worked alongside the Liberia Pure team, developing roast profiles, introducing quality control systems, and helping staff understand what it takes to produce exceptional coffee.

"Rodrigo didn't just teach us how to roast coffee. He taught us how to taste it, evaluate it, and look for quality at every step." says Bedella.

But one lesson became clear almost immediately. Great coffee isn't created in the roasting room. It begins months earlier on the farm.

As the first market for Liberian specialty coffee takes shape, the team's attention is now shifting to the growers themselves. During recent visits with coffee farmers, they saw tremendous potential to improve everything from pruning and tree management to harvesting ripe cherries and drying techniques. Small improvements at each stage can dramatically increase both the quantity and quality of coffee a farmer produces.

"The biggest lesson for me was that quality isn't an accident. Every step matters, from the way the cherries are harvested to the final roast. If we do those things well, farmers will earn more," says Gladys.

A Coffee with Deep Roots in Liberia

Liberia is home to Liberica coffee, a rare species that accounts for only a small fraction of the world's coffee production. Liberia has a long history with the bean, and its tropical climate produces coffee with bold flavours and distinctive character.

As specialty coffee drinkers continue looking for unique origins and varieties, Liberica is receiving renewed attention around the world. It offers something genuinely different in a coffee market that's increasingly interested in unique stories, flavour profiles and origins.

With buyers beginning to emerge and the first roasting systems now in place, Liberia Pure can finally begin helping farmers capture more value from the coffee they have been growing for generations. The goal isn't simply to roast great coffee. It's to build a thriving coffee industry that gives Liberian farmers a stronger, more reliable source of income for years to come.