diff --git a/docs/source/backends.rst b/docs/source/backends.rst
index 7de6dc1b3..c209095c6 100644
--- a/docs/source/backends.rst
+++ b/docs/source/backends.rst
@@ -14,7 +14,6 @@ Backends
     platypush/backend/google.pubsub.rst
     platypush/backend/gps.rst
     platypush/backend/http.rst
-    platypush/backend/kafka.rst
     platypush/backend/mail.rst
     platypush/backend/midi.rst
     platypush/backend/music.mopidy.rst
diff --git a/docs/source/platypush/backend/kafka.rst b/docs/source/platypush/backend/kafka.rst
deleted file mode 100644
index 7de4c3ee4..000000000
--- a/docs/source/platypush/backend/kafka.rst
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,6 +0,0 @@
-``kafka``
-===========================
-
-.. automodule:: platypush.backend.kafka
-    :members:
-
diff --git a/platypush/backend/kafka/__init__.py b/platypush/backend/kafka/__init__.py
deleted file mode 100644
index a86b715cf..000000000
--- a/platypush/backend/kafka/__init__.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,109 +0,0 @@
-import logging
-import time
-
-from platypush.backend import Backend
-from platypush.context import get_plugin
-from platypush.message import Message
-from platypush.message.event.kafka import KafkaMessageEvent
-
-
-class KafkaBackend(Backend):
-    """
-    Backend to interact with an Apache Kafka (https://kafka.apache.org/)
-    streaming platform, send and receive messages.
-    """
-
-    _conn_retry_secs = 5
-
-    def __init__(self, server='localhost:9092', topic='platypush', **kwargs):
-        """
-        :param server: Kafka server name or address + port (default: ``localhost:9092``)
-        :type server: str
-
-        :param topic: (Prefix) topic to listen to (default: platypush). The
-            Platypush device_id (by default the hostname) will be appended to
-            the topic (the real topic name will e.g. be "platypush.my_rpi")
-        :type topic: str
-        """
-
-        super().__init__(**kwargs)
-
-        self.server = server
-        self.topic_prefix = topic
-        self.topic = self._topic_by_device_id(self.device_id)
-        self.producer = None
-        self.consumer = None
-
-        # Kafka can be veryyyy noisy
-        logging.getLogger('kafka').setLevel(logging.ERROR)
-
-    def _on_record(self, record):
-        if record.topic != self.topic:
-            return
-        msg = record.value.decode('utf-8')
-        is_platypush_message = False
-
-        try:
-            msg = Message.build(msg)
-            is_platypush_message = True
-        except Exception as e:
-            self.logger.debug(str(e))
-
-        self.logger.info('Received message on Kafka backend: {}'.format(msg))
-
-        if is_platypush_message:
-            self.on_message(msg)
-        else:
-            self.on_message(KafkaMessageEvent(msg=msg))
-
-    def _topic_by_device_id(self, device_id):
-        return '{}.{}'.format(self.topic_prefix, device_id)
-
-    def send_message(self, msg, **_):
-        target = msg.target
-        kafka_plugin = get_plugin('kafka')
-        kafka_plugin.send_message(
-            msg=msg, topic=self._topic_by_device_id(target), server=self.server
-        )
-
-    def on_stop(self):
-        super().on_stop()
-        try:
-            if self.producer:
-                self.producer.flush()
-                self.producer.close()
-
-            if self.consumer:
-                self.consumer.close()
-        except Exception as e:
-            self.logger.warning('Exception occurred while closing Kafka connection')
-            self.logger.exception(e)
-
-    def run(self):
-        from kafka import KafkaConsumer
-
-        super().run()
-
-        self.consumer = KafkaConsumer(self.topic, bootstrap_servers=self.server)
-        self.logger.info(
-            'Initialized kafka backend - server: {}, topic: {}'.format(
-                self.server, self.topic
-            )
-        )
-
-        try:
-            for msg in self.consumer:
-                self._on_record(msg)
-                if self.should_stop():
-                    break
-        except Exception as e:
-            self.logger.warning(
-                'Kafka connection error, reconnecting in {} seconds'.format(
-                    self._conn_retry_secs
-                )
-            )
-            self.logger.exception(e)
-            time.sleep(self._conn_retry_secs)
-
-
-# vim:sw=4:ts=4:et:
diff --git a/platypush/backend/kafka/manifest.yaml b/platypush/backend/kafka/manifest.yaml
deleted file mode 100644
index 91cf8860b..000000000
--- a/platypush/backend/kafka/manifest.yaml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,11 +0,0 @@
-manifest:
-  events: {}
-  install:
-    apt:
-      - python3-kafka
-    dnf:
-      - python-kafka
-    pip:
-      - kafka
-  package: platypush.backend.kafka
-  type: backend
diff --git a/platypush/message/event/kafka.py b/platypush/message/event/kafka.py
index 79a1938f5..e4d7e4886 100644
--- a/platypush/message/event/kafka.py
+++ b/platypush/message/event/kafka.py
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+from typing import Union
 from platypush.message.event import Event
 
 
@@ -7,14 +8,24 @@ class KafkaMessageEvent(Event):
     a new event.
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, msg, *args, **kwargs):
+    def __init__(
+        self,
+        *args,
+        msg: Union[str, list, dict],
+        topic: str,
+        host: str,
+        port: int,
+        **kwargs
+    ):
         """
-        :param msg: Received message
-        :type msg: str or bytes stream
+        :param msg: Received message. If the message is a JSON string, it will
+            be returned as a dict or list. If it's a binary blob, it will be
+            returned as a base64-encoded string.
+        :param topic: Topic where the message was received.
+        :param host: Host where the message was received.
+        :param port: Port where the message was received.
         """
-
-        super().__init__(msg=msg, *args, **kwargs)
+        super().__init__(*args, msg=msg, topic=topic, host=host, port=port, **kwargs)
 
 
 # vim:sw=4:ts=4:et:
-
diff --git a/platypush/plugins/kafka/__init__.py b/platypush/plugins/kafka/__init__.py
index 376a6b9f9..7d42777ff 100644
--- a/platypush/plugins/kafka/__init__.py
+++ b/platypush/plugins/kafka/__init__.py
@@ -1,71 +1,243 @@
+import base64
 import json
 import logging
+from collections import defaultdict
+from threading import RLock, Thread
+from typing import Dict, Iterable, Optional, Union
 
-from platypush.context import get_backend
-from platypush.plugins import Plugin, action
+from kafka import KafkaConsumer, KafkaProducer
+
+from platypush.message.event.kafka import KafkaMessageEvent
+from platypush.plugins import RunnablePlugin, action
 
 
-class KafkaPlugin(Plugin):
+class KafkaPlugin(RunnablePlugin):
     """
     Plugin to send messages to an Apache Kafka instance (https://kafka.apache.org/)
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, server=None, port=9092, **kwargs):
+    def __init__(
+        self,
+        host: Optional[str] = None,
+        port: int = 9092,
+        listeners: Optional[Iterable[dict]] = None,
+        connection_retry_secs: float = 5.0,
+        **kwargs,
+    ):
         """
-        :param server: Default Kafka server name or address. If None (default), then it has to be specified upon
-            message sending.
-        :type server: str
-
+        :param host: Default Kafka server name or address. If None (default),
+            then it has to be specified when calling the ``send_message`` action.
         :param port: Default Kafka server port (default: 9092).
-        :type port: int
+        :param connection_retry_secs: Seconds to wait before retrying to
+            connect to the Kafka server after a connection error (default: 5).
+        :param listeners: If specified, the Kafka plugin will listen for
+            messages on these topics. Use this parameter if you also want to
+            listen on other Kafka brokers other than the primary one. This
+            parameter supports a list of maps, where each item supports the
+            same arguments passed to the main configuration (host, port, topic,
+            password etc.). If host/port are omitted, then the host/port value
+            from the plugin configuration will be used. If any of the other
+            fields are omitted, then their default value will be used (usually
+            null). Example:
+
+                .. code-block:: yaml
+
+                    listeners:
+                        # This listener use the default configured host/port
+                        - topics:
+                              - topic1
+                              - topic2
+                              - topic3
+
+                        # This will use a custom MQTT broker host
+                        - host: sensors
+                          port: 19200
+                          username: myuser
+                          password: secret
+                          topics:
+                              - topic4
+                              - topic5
+
         """
 
         super().__init__(**kwargs)
 
-        self.server = (
-            '{server}:{port}'.format(server=server, port=port) if server else None
-        )
+        self.host = host
+        self.port = port
+        self._conn_retry_secs = connection_retry_secs
+        self._listeners = listeners or []
 
-        self.producer = None
+        # `server:port` -> KafkaProducer mapping
+        self.producers: Dict[str, KafkaProducer] = {}
+        # `server:port` -> KafkaConsumer mapping
+        self.consumers: Dict[str, KafkaConsumer] = {}
 
-        # Kafka can be veryyyy noisy
+        # Synchronization locks for the producers/consumers maps,
+        # since python-kafka is not thread-safe
+        self._producers_locks = defaultdict(RLock)
+        self._consumers_locks = defaultdict(RLock)
+
+        # Kafka can be very noisy
         logging.getLogger('kafka').setLevel(logging.ERROR)
 
-    @action
-    def send_message(self, msg, topic, server=None):
-        """
-        :param msg: Message to send - as a string, bytes stream, JSON, Platypush message, dictionary, or anything
-            that implements ``__str__``
+    def _get_srv_str(
+        self, host: Optional[str] = None, port: Optional[int] = None
+    ) -> str:
+        if not host:
+            host = self.host
 
-        :param topic: Topic to send the message to.
-        :type topic: str
+        assert host, 'No Kafka server specified'
+        if not port:
+            port = self.port
 
-        :param server: Kafka server name or address + port (format: ``host:port``). If None, then the default server
-            will be used
-        :type server: str
-        """
+        return f'{host}:{port}'
 
-        from kafka import KafkaProducer
+    def _get_producer(
+        self, host: Optional[str] = None, port: Optional[int] = None, **kwargs
+    ):
+        srv_str = self._get_srv_str(host, port)
+        with self._producers_locks[srv_str]:
+            if srv_str not in self.producers:
+                self.producers[srv_str] = KafkaProducer(
+                    bootstrap_servers=srv_str, **kwargs
+                )
+            return self.producers[srv_str]
 
-        if not server:
-            if not self.server:
-                try:
-                    kafka_backend = get_backend('kafka')
-                    server = kafka_backend.server
-                except Exception as e:
-                    raise RuntimeError(
-                        f'No Kafka server nor default server specified: {str(e)}'
+    def _get_consumer(
+        self, host: Optional[str] = None, port: Optional[int] = None, **kwargs
+    ):
+        srv_str = self._get_srv_str(host, port)
+        with self._consumers_locks[srv_str]:
+            if srv_str not in self.consumers:
+                self.consumers[srv_str] = KafkaConsumer(
+                    bootstrap_servers=srv_str, **kwargs
+                )
+            return self.consumers[srv_str]
+
+    def _on_msg(self, record, host: str, port: int):
+        try:
+            msg = record.value.decode()
+        except UnicodeDecodeError:
+            msg = base64.b64encode(record.value).decode()
+
+        try:
+            msg = json.loads(msg)
+        except (TypeError, ValueError):
+            pass
+
+        self._bus.post(
+            KafkaMessageEvent(msg=msg, topic=record.topic, host=host, port=port)
+        )
+
+    def _consumer_monitor(self, consumer: KafkaConsumer, host: str, port: int):
+        while not self.should_stop():
+            try:
+                for msg in consumer:
+                    self._on_msg(msg, host=host, port=port)
+                    if self.should_stop():
+                        break
+            except Exception as e:
+                if not self.should_stop():
+                    self.logger.exception(e)
+                    self.logger.warning(
+                        'Kafka connection error to %s:%d, reconnecting in %f seconds',
+                        host,
+                        port,
+                        self._conn_retry_secs,
                     )
-            else:
-                server = self.server
 
+                self.wait_stop(self._conn_retry_secs)
+
+    @action
+    def publish(self, msg: Union[str, list, dict, tuple, bytes], topic: str, **kwargs):
+        """
+        :param msg: Message to send.
+        :param topic: Topic to send the message to.
+        :param kwargs: Additional arguments to pass to the KafkaConsumer,
+            including ``host`` and ``port``.
+        """
+        if isinstance(msg, tuple):
+            msg = list(msg)
         if isinstance(msg, (dict, list)):
             msg = json.dumps(msg)
-        msg = str(msg).encode()
+        if not isinstance(msg, bytes):
+            msg = str(msg).encode()
 
-        producer = KafkaProducer(bootstrap_servers=server)
+        producer = self._get_producer(**kwargs)
         producer.send(topic, msg)
         producer.flush()
 
+    @action
+    def send_message(
+        self, msg: Union[str, list, dict, tuple, bytes], topic: str, **kwargs
+    ):
+        """
+        Alias for :meth:`.publish`.
+        """
+        return self.send_message(msg=msg, topic=topic, **kwargs)
+
+    @action
+    def subscribe(self, topic: str, **kwargs):
+        """
+        Subscribe to a topic.
+
+        :param topic: Topic to subscribe to.
+        :param kwargs: Additional arguments to pass to the KafkaConsumer,
+            including ``host`` and ``port``.
+        """
+        consumer = self._get_consumer(**kwargs)
+        consumer.subscribe([topic])
+
+    @action
+    def unsubscribe(self, **kwargs):
+        """
+        Unsubscribe from all the topics on a consumer.
+
+        :param kwargs: Additional arguments to pass to the KafkaConsumer,
+            including ``host`` and ``port``.
+        """
+        consumer = self._get_consumer(**kwargs)
+        consumer.unsubscribe()
+
+    def main(self):
+        for listener in self._listeners:
+            host = listener.get('host', self.host)
+            port = listener.get('port', self.port)
+            topics = listener.get('topics')
+            if not topics:
+                continue
+
+            consumer = self._get_consumer(
+                host=host,
+                port=port,
+                group_id='platypush',
+                auto_offset_reset='earliest',
+            )
+
+            consumer.subscribe(topics)
+            Thread(
+                target=self._consumer_monitor,
+                args=(consumer,),
+                kwargs={'host': host, 'port': port},
+                daemon=True,
+            ).start()
+
+        self.wait_stop()
+
+    def stop(self):
+        super().stop()
+        for srv, producer in self.producers.items():
+            try:
+                producer.flush()
+                producer.close()
+            except Exception as e:
+                self.logger.warning('Error while closing Kafka producer %s: %s', srv, e)
+
+        for srv, consumer in self.consumers.items():
+            try:
+                consumer.close()
+            except Exception as e:
+                self.logger.warning('Error while closing Kafka consumer %s: %s', srv, e)
+
 
 # vim:sw=4:ts=4:et:
diff --git a/platypush/plugins/kafka/manifest.yaml b/platypush/plugins/kafka/manifest.yaml
index 6804752e2..2fac76954 100644
--- a/platypush/plugins/kafka/manifest.yaml
+++ b/platypush/plugins/kafka/manifest.yaml
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 manifest:
   events:
-    platypush.message.event.kafka.KafkaMessageEvent: when a new message is received
-      on the consumer topic.
+    - platypush.message.event.kafka.KafkaMessageEvent
   install:
     apt:
       - python-kafka