Coffee ouput falls short

The current export trends indicate India's coffee output in 2006-07 (October-September) may have fallen short of the final estimate of 288,000 tonnes, Coffee Board Chairman G V Krishna Rau said today.

Production estimates for 2007-08 (October-September) might also drop from the current levels on account of the heavy rains seen in the coffee growing regions, he said addressing the 49th annual conference of Karnataka Planters' Association.

The Coffee Board had expected last year's (2006-07) crop at 288,000 tonnes.

And that is the main source for the current year's exports. So far, permits have been issued for 124,000 tonnes, while the target for the year is 205,000 tonnes. "Looking at the targets fixed for the current financial year to March, we don't see any problem in achieving the (export) target," he said.

However, he said export trends so far have not brought much cheer.

"The current export trends indicate we may fall short of our production estimates marginally though it is early to have final inference on this," he said.

For the 2007-08 season, the Coffee Board has released a post-blossom estimate of 291,000 tonnes.

However, several coffee growing locations received excess southwest monsoon June-July, accompanied by gusty winds. The high precipitation caused significant damage to coffee growing regions in Karnataka and Kerala.

"Owing to this, production estimates (for 2007-08) could come down when we revisit the coffee farms for making final crop estimates."

Rau noted that exports this financial year were down from previous year levels as many growers are still holding on to the stocks with the expectation that prices will go up.

He also noted that some growers might have been deterred from releasing their stock in September-October due to the active northeast monsoon.

Productivity fall
India's coffee output has remained stagnant in the region of 270,000-280,000 tonnes for the past 5-6 years.

Rau said productivity levels in traditional coffee growing states such as Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, which were around 950 kg per ha a decade ago, have slipped to 860 kg now.

This is due to ageing plants, he said citing statistics available with the board""about 80,000 ha of traditional coffee growing areas have gone past the economic age.

The loss of millions of Arabica plants due to the white stem borer menace in the last 4-5 years in traditional coffee growing areas have also contributed to the downward trend in the productivity levels of the variety.

He also mentioned that the Central Coffee Research Institute has developed an Arabica variety, which is superior to others in leaf rust resistance and offers better protection against the white stem borer. The new variety will be released early December.

Domestic consumption
Domestic coffee consumption has seen a healthy growth in the last 5-6 years, he said.

"We need to take advantage of this favourable atmosphere with an aim of consuming at least 50 per cent of our production within the country," he said.

Currently, domestic consumption accounts for approximately 28 per cent of the output.

Rau also said the Board has formulated the 11th Five-Year Plan (2007-12) schemes and is awaiting government approval.

The schemes include support for replantation to all categories of growers of Arabica and Robusta, continuation of interest subsidy on working capital improvements, rainfall insurance, and support for coffee processing.