In a statement on Monday, April 13, 2026, NAEB confirmed that Rwanda coffee captured global attention with an anaerobic natural processed lot that placed in the top five out of 48 competing samples.
“Rwanda coffee ranked among the winners at the World of Coffee San Diego 2026 cupping competition, capturing global attention with an anaerobic natural processed lot that placed in the top 5 out of 48 samples,” NAEB said. “This achievement reflects Rwanda’s continued commitment to quality, innovation, and strong competitiveness on the global market.”
The World of Coffee San Diego 2026, organised by the Speciality Coffee Association (SCA), is regarded as North America’s leading speciality coffee trade event. Held from April 10–12 at the San Diego Convention Centre in California, the exhibition brought together more than 650 exhibitors and over 15,000 participants from 90 countries, making it one of the most influential gatherings in the global coffee value chain.
NAEB Director General Claude Bizimana attended the three-day event and led a delegation of Rwandan coffee exporters, engaging with international buyers and stakeholders across the speciality coffee industry.
The cupping competition, where Rwanda’s entry stood out, evaluates coffee through blind tasting by professional cuppers who assess aroma, acidity, body, and flavour complexity. The process is widely regarded as one of the most rigorous methods for identifying premium speciality coffee lots.
The awarded lot was also previously recognised in the 2025 Rwanda Coffee Excellence Competition, highlighting its consistent quality performance across different stages of evaluation.
Beyond the competition, WOC San Diego served as a major platform for global coffee trade, innovation, and networking, helping producing countries like Rwanda access new markets and strengthen their international visibility in the speciality coffee sector.
During the event, NAEB also highlighted a key milestone in coffee sector cooperation. Bizimana, who also serves as Executive Director of the African Coffee-producing Countries Organisation, oversaw the signing of a cooperation agreement with the International Coffee Organisation (ICO).
The agreement aims to strengthen collaboration in the global coffee sector through improved data collection and analysis, support for farmers and traders in meeting international trade regulations, promotion of research on climate-resilient coffee, and capacity building across the entire coffee value chain.
Under Rwanda’s National Strategy for Transformation (NST2), the country aims to export more than 32,000 tons of coffee annually and generate over $115 million in foreign exchange earnings by 2029.
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