Skip to main content

Sumseron Coffee

Kenya’s First Shipment of Green Coffee to Italy

Kenya

In July 2026, a number stakeholders including the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI), Kenya’s State Department for Trade and EU-EAC MARKUP II, gathered to flag off Kenya’s first shipment of green coffee to Italy. Amounting to 20 containers, the shipment marks a landmark moment for Kenya, and for the thousands of coffee SMEs across the country working towards international market access.

The shipment also represents the culmination of decades of work from Sumseron Coffee, and from John Seroney, the founder at the helm of the SME. For John, this moment carries great bearing. His father started their family’s coffee legacy back in 1978, over five decades ago.

John Sumeyon, Founder of Sumseron Coffee

"Whenever I think about that, I think about the struggles, the challenges my dad went through. The sleepless nights." The struggle, John says, was never just about his own family. "It’s a representation of thousands and thousands of other families working so hard on the coffee farm – to make sure their families get something to put on the table."

This conviction sharply shapes how Sumseron Coffee operates today. The SME’s foundation is in ethical sourcing, working closely with youth, women and cooperatives across Kenya’s growing coffee regions. "You cannot detach us from impact", John explains, “we value where the coffee comes from, who the producers are. We don’t just sell coffee for the sake of it.""

Building the Foundation – MARKUP II’s role in Sumseron Coffee

"MARKUP II has played a very vital role for Sumseron Coffee" John explains, "Ever since I joined MARKUP II, we’ve seen tremendous growth – right from aligning our structured into a company that has systems." MARKUP II’s support has extended to strengthening Sumseron’s brand visibility, and supporting with building the tools needed to tell a credible, traceable coffee story to international buyers.

Export-readiness training walked Sumseron through the full journey; from documentation and compliance to export logistics and shipment – while access to finance training helped the company understand the level of capital needed before a company can export internationally.

In 2024, MARKUP II supported Sumseron’s participation in World of Coffee Copenhagen; an experience that John credits with reshaping how the company thinks about the European market. "That opened up our mind to what the European market wants with regards to requirements, compliance and procedures."

With regards to bringing the Trieste shipment together, John points out that it took coordinated efforts across an entire value chain; export and logistics partners like Mitchell Cotts, standardization entity Kenya Bureau of Standards and the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce.

"The biggest challenge for export is always compliance, logistics, and raw materials", John reflects. "What made it easier was partnership and collaboration."

What Comes Next

For John, the Trieste shipment is just the beginning. "Our entry to Europe through Italy is not just the first shipment... We're focused on the repeat containers – building trust especially with the buyer." Beyond Italy, Sumseron is already looking toward France, Sweden and the wider European market, betting that satisfied buyers will amplify Sumseron to other buyers across the European coffee market.

His last reflections to budding entrepreneurs in the coffee space; "For any SME who intends to scale, technical expertise is needed, capacity building is needed, training is needed." And a structured program like MARKUP II has contributed directly to Sumseron’s ability to scale.

Hear directly from John through this interview: