Colombia: Coffee On The Rise

Avatar for Matt Hopkins By Scott C. Lucas|28 November 2006

Coffee production is up in Colombia, with a US free trade agreement soon to take effect that would eliminate duties and bring greater investment to growers. According to the US Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agriculture Service (USDA-FAS), production is expected to reach 12.2 million bags (60 kg) in 2006/07, which would be 250,000 bags higher than a year before, thanks in part to high-production areas in the South. The 2006/07 season also is expected to receive less pressure from the cherry borer, which damaged the quality of the previous year’s crop.

Exports will increase to 11.2 million bags helped by good international prices and larger exports of value-added coffee products. The Colombia – US free trade agreement (FTA), when implemented, will allow new value-added and coffee-containing products to enter duty free to the US, which is Colombian coffee’s biggest import market.