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Coffee Board to focus on health benefits

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Our Bureau Bangalore
Research carried out in the past few decades has clearly indicated that coffee consumption in moderation had no adverse impact on human health.
 
Instead, it had certain potential health benefits in respect of ailments such like cirrhosis of liver, cancer, heart disease and Parkinson's disease.
 
Coffee consumption in moderation helped increase alertness and mental performance thanks to the presence of antioxidants in coffee, said Dr Ernesto Illy, chairman of the gourmet coffee brand Illycafe while delivering the keynote address at a seminar organised by Coffee Board in Bangalore on 'Coffee and Health'.
 
Production and consumption of coffee was separated, with poor countries dominating production and rich countries dominating consumption, he added. Low consumption in the poor producing countries could be attributed to two major factors.
 
First, the producing countries always encouraged exports to earn foreign exchange. Two, there existed a "misplaced belief" among their population that coffee was not good for health.
 
Backed by positive findings on effects of coffee on human health, many of the major producing countries like Brazil and Colombia had launched a campaign to spread the message among domestic consumers that coffee was good for health. They succeeded in promoting coffee consumption in the domestic market.
 
International Coffee Organisation (ICO) has also taken up the task of disseminating information on the health benefits of coffee drinking with the "objective of enhancing coffee consumption to catch up with the increased supplies in the world market," Illy noted.
 
Coffee was the world's largest traded commodity as well as one of the most preferred beverages. Coffee-growing formed the backbone of the economy of many least developed and developing countries of the world.
 
It was of major economic significance to developed countries as consumers were concentrated there.
 
In her inaugural address, Coffee Board chairperson Lakshmi Venkatachalam said, "India with its large population base and immense cultural and economic diversities, offers tremendous potential for increasing the coffee consumption. For every increase of 1 gram per capita, the requirement of green coffee would be 1,200 tonnes".
 
Domestic consumption had stagnated over a few decades owing to negative image in the minds of majority of consumers, she added. Coffee Board has launched a campaign to correct this problem.
 
The Board would disseminate information among medical professionals as also other key persons and opinion-makers about the beneficial effects of coffee on the health system.

 
 

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First Published: Feb 19 2004 | 12:00 AM IST

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