By MALUM NALU
The Lamari Coffee Cooperative Society has surpassed K1.5 million in coffee sales in just two months of participating in the Coffee Industry Corporation’s Coffee Cooperative Crusade (CCC), marking another major success for Papua New Guinea’s growing smallholder coffee sector.
The cooperative, based in Lamari Local Level Government, Obura-Wonenara District, Eastern Highlands Province, joined the CIC-PACD Coffee Cooperative Crusade group marketing programme only two months ago but has already generated K1,524,484.95 through the sale of 61,420.90 kilograms of green bean coffee.
According to Lamari Coffee Cooperative Society Team Leader Ameke Hongenare, the cooperative achieved the milestone despite joining the programme later than many other participating coffee societies.
“This is our second month of participating in group marketing under the CIC-PACD Coffee Cooperative Crusade programme,” Hongenare said.
“It has been a very busy month for us as we tried our best to catch up with other coffee cooperative societies that started last year or earlier this year.
“Despite joining late, we are proud of what we have achieved in just two months.”
STRONG AUGUST PERFORMANCE
The cooperative’s biggest gains came in August, when growing farmer participation helped more than double its July sales.
During July, Lamari completed five deliveries of green bean coffee—four to Niugini Highlands Coffee Exports and one to Monpi Coffee Exports—delivering 21,005.35 kilograms of coffee, equivalent to about 350 bags, and earning K501,593.75.
In August, increasing numbers of farmers joined the cooperative’s group marketing initiative, resulting in nine deliveries—one to Gepo Coffee Exports and eight to Monpi Coffee Exports.
The cooperative delivered 40,415.55 kilograms of green bean coffee, or approximately 675.6 bags, generating K1,022,891.20 in just one month.
RAPID GROWTH
Over the two-month period, Lamari Coffee Cooperative Society has achieved:
- 14 coffee deliveries
- 61,420.90 kilograms of green bean coffee marketed
- 1,025.5 bags sold
- K1,524,484.95 in total sales
Hongenare described the achievement as a significant milestone for the cooperative and its member farmers.
FARMERS BENEFITING
The strong returns are already flowing back into rural communities.
Hongenare said many farmers are using their coffee earnings to reinvest in the industry by purchasing additional parchment coffee at prices ranging between K13.00 and K14.50 per kilogram, helping stimulate local coffee production and trade.
While acknowledging the cooperative has faced several operational challenges, he said members remained committed to expanding their activities.
“Despite the challenges, we are looking forward to helping more farmers in September,” Hongenare said.
BACKGROUND
The latest achievement builds on Lamari Coffee Cooperative Society’s rapid rise over the past month.
On 16 August 2026, the cooperative completed its seventh delivery of 173 bags of green bean coffee to Monpi Coffee Export, continuing its march towards what was then a target of K1 million in cumulative sales.
At the time, another 252 bags of parchment coffee were being processed at the Gerame Coffee Factory in Goroka, providing a strong pipeline for future deliveries.
By the end of July, the cooperative had already generated K490,727.75 from its first four sales of green bean coffee. Cooperative members had processed 463 bags of parchment coffee, producing 341 bags of green bean coffee weighing 20,482 kilograms, demonstrating the benefits of collective marketing.
Hongenare said then that more farmers were joining the cooperative each week after seeing the financial benefits.
“Every week, more farmers are bringing their parchment coffee to the cooperative because they can see the results,” he said.
“Every truckload of coffee represents income for farming families, school fees for children and investment back into our rural communities.
“This is proof that when farmers work together through collective marketing, they can produce quality coffee, access better markets and earn better returns.
“We are only just beginning.”
That prediction has now become reality, with the cooperative not only surpassing its K1 million target but reaching more than K1.5 million in cumulative sales within two months of commencing group marketing.
Lamari Coffee Cooperative Society is one of the farmer organisations established under the Coffee Cooperative Crusade (CCC), an initiative of the Coffee Industry Corporation Limited (CICL) implemented through the Papua New Guinea Agriculture Commercialisation and Diversification (PACD) Project, funded by the Government of Papua New Guinea with support from the World Bank.
The CCC was spearheaded by Potaisa Hombunaka, Manager of the PACD Coffee Component, to organise smallholder coffee farmers into legally registered cooperatives capable of producing high-quality coffee, marketing collectively and earning higher returns through direct sales to exporters.
Although the PACD Project officially concluded on 30 June 2026, former project staff have continued supporting participating cooperatives. Hongenare and former extension officer Philomina Mofeno have voluntarily coordinated transport, processing and marketing to ensure farmers continue benefiting from collective coffee sales, reinforcing the success of the cooperative model in Obura-Wonenara District.