India’s coffee output in the current year ending September is likely to be slightly lower than Coffee Board’s post-blossom estimates, growers and exporters said.
The 2010-11 coffee output is expected to be 300,000-302,000 tonnes, they said, adding that this projection may be revised as robusta coffee harvesting is likely to begin from January.
“Total output will not be sharply less than the post-blossom estimates as robusta is seen making up for the loss in arabica coffee output. It will be more than 300,000 tonnes,” Coffee Exporters Association of India President Ramesh Rajah said.
The Coffee Board in its March post-blossom output estimate had pegged the 2010-11 arabica coffee output at 99,500 tonnes and robusta at 208,500 tonnes. The total actual production in 2009-10 was 294,600 tonnes.
The Board is in the process of collating post-monsoon coffee output estimates and is assessing harvesting in key growing states such as Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu.
The board makes two coffee output estimates every crop year—the first after the blossoming of crop in March-April and another in October-November after the monsoon retreats. This year, post-monsoon estimates have been delayed due to unseasonal rains affecting coffee growing states.
“Rain in November did not cause a serious damage to the crop as it did last year, mainly because the crop was not yet ripe. However, it will surely be lower than the Coffee Board’s post-blossom estimates,” Anil Bhandari, member, Coffee Board, said.
While growers see a nearly 10 per cent drop in arabica coffee output, harvesting for which began last week, they hope the loss will be compensated by a slightly better robusta crop.
Arabica coffee harvesting has picked up in the past one week and is likely to go on till January-end. Robusta harvesting is expected to pick up from January and may go on till March.
