Colombia’s National Federation of Coffee Growers announced Thursday that “the worst is over,” and that next year’s coffee harvest will be an improvement on 2009’s record low.
The federation’s head, Luis Genaro Muñoz, confirmed that 2009 was one of the worst harvests ever, with a fall of over 30% to 7.8 million bags. Revenue dropped by COP400 billion to COP3.8 trillion.
Muñoz declared that 2010 would be an improvement, with production rising to between 11 and 12 million bags.
The coffee chief went on to hail the continued success of Colombian coffee chain Juan Valdez, which has expanded with new outlets in supermarkets around the country.
Exceptionally poor harvests in both Brazil and Colombia, combined with a swelling of global demand, will combine to raise the price of the coffee bean worldwide.
“Premiums are bound to increase,” the International Coffee Organization predicted last week. “There is no coffee at present.”
