Colombia Coffee Output to Recover in 2010

Colombia’s coffee output will recover to above 11 million 60-kg sacks in 2010 as the sector benefits from better weather, increased fertilization and newly renovated fields, the country’s growers’ federation said on Tuesday.

This year’s production is expected at 9.3 million 60-kg bags, down from output of 11.4 million sacks in 2008, federation chief Luis Munoz told local radio. « Colombian production is going to recover by 2 million sacks just as quickly as it fell by 2 million sacks, » he said.

Colombia has 880,000 hectares (2.2 million acres) of coffee-growing land, 550,000 of which is currently under cultivation, Munoz said. The remaining 330,000 hectares is being renovated as part of a five-year program aimed at increasing productivity, he said.

Coffee production in Colombia, the top producer of high-quality Arabica beans, fell 12 percent to 777,000 60-kg bags in September versus September 2008 due to heavy rains and the ongoing program to replace older trees.

Source : Flexnews