Harvest season

Another typical day in the life of a coffee farmer here in Rwanda during the harvesting season.

After a long day of individually handpicking the cherries, which are at their peak of ripeness, the farmers take their coffee to weigh stations around the mountain hills. Here they are paid on the merit of their work per kilogram.

They also float the coffee in a bucket, to ensure that they have not picked any immature, unripe cherries. The day’s harvest is bagged all together and transported, by bicycle, to the washing station closest to their farms. This can be a long journey. Never mind the Tour de France, the strength of these men never fails to amaze me. We’ve had a lot of rain this month, which has made the ride up and down the mountain hills difficult.