COLOMBIA COFFEE EXPORTS STOPPED COLD BY QUAKE
Last week’s major earthquake that rocked Colombia has stopped their export of this year’s coffees. Colombia is the world’s third-largest coffee producer, exporting about 13 million 60-kilogram bags per year and Colombians are the major contributors of beans to every blend of coffees on earth. The loss of coffee from that nation will ripple through the export markets and consumers can expect to see shortages of many other coffee blends for the foreseeable future.
The major coffee producing areas including Risaralda, Valle del Cauca, Caldas, Antioquia, Chocó, and Quindío have been hit hard by the quake. Roads and bridges are gone or decidedly unsafe to use, and coffees ready for export will take a backseat to other important incoming trade for humanitarian needs.
Gustavo Gomez, Executive President of Colombia’s Coffee Exporters Association (Asoexport), says there is currently no timeline on when the port will be reopened. The major port of Buenaventura is out of commission at present, and will require long and intense labor to get it running again, after which, priority to incoming shipments of emergency goods will take priority over most other traffic. It’s possible that Colombia will be out of the trade through the coming year. This was compiled from several Colombian and coffee trade sources.