Don’t cut corners on higher grounds : Robusta Coffee

The decline in the price of Kerala’s esteemed Robusta Coffee in the global market is disconcerting to the planters in the state.  

Despite  the increase in the minimum support price (MSP) by Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac for a kg of raw Robusta coffee to ₹90.  The impact in the coffee market remained imperceptible.For profitable farming, the growers should get at least ₹90 a kg for raw coffee as they had to spend more than ₹80 to produce it.

 According to data available with the Coffee Board, Kerala produced 64,125 tonnes of Robusta coffee during 2019-20, of which Wayanad contributed 55,225 tonnes, making it the prominent region in the country cultivating the variety. Robusta coffee is cultivated on 67,366 hectares in Wayanad and 59,621 farmers are dependent on the sector. Nearly 97 per cent of them are small scale growers,
 The Kerala government has been intensively marketing and branding the Wayanad coffee over the last few years. It was awarded GI tag by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in 2019 along with other varieties such as — Coorg Arabica coffee from Karnataka, Chikmaglur Arabica from Karnataka, Araku Valley Arabica from Andhra Pradesh, and Bababudangiris Arabica coffee from Karnataka to boost demand. Last year India’s coffee exports took a hit in the April-June quarter as orders from the largest buyer Italy who was in the throes of  pandemic came to standstill. 
 According to Prasanth Rajesh, President, Wayanad Coffee Growers’ Association (WCGA), “The price of coffee fluctuates as per the international market but the withdrawal of merchandise export incentive scheme (MEIS) by the Central government last month also contributed to the fall in the price.”
 Cover image by KNN India