Our 1549 Signature Coffee is from the Kifaru Estate in north Tanzania. The Kifaru Estate is situated atop the fertile ridge of the Ngorongoro Crater, not far from Mount Kilimanjaro. Kifaru Estate is Rain Forest Alliance Certified. The estate is owned by a family from southern Denmark and managed with a hands-on approach together with a skilled local team. The estate is 500ha, of which 150ha is planted with Bourbon. A further 50ha have recently been planted with Gesha, Castillo, Pacamara and other varieties. The farm is partly irrigated by modern drip line systems to ensure efficient water usage, while an increasing shade tree population further improves the ecosystem. Kifaru Coffee Estate grows avocados on 35ha of land and has a testing plot for viticulture grapes. Additionally there is a dairy herd grazing on 120ha of grassland which serves the local market with milk and cheese. The farm also retains large wildlife pockets, connecting with the bordering conservation area to allow for safe and undisturbed bugger zones between urban Karatu and the habitat of elephants and other wildlife in the neighbouring Ngorongoro Conservation Area A Tanzanian-based trust provides education for the children of all employees and healthcare for all treatments not otherwise covered by the public health system. There is also a daycare centre and support for the local school with funding and a long term volunteering programme.