Revamp coffee sector

In the month of February, the price of Robusta coffee dropped by 15.4 per cent in the global market.

However, the price of the Kenyan specialty, Arabica, remained strong, perhaps cushioned from such drops by the drought that has limited the supplies.

The current trend in the world market is worrying, though not yet for Arabica which has gained 19 per cent in the past year at the New York exchange.

But we should not be complacent.

Kenya should continue to guard its position as a premium producer of Arabica coffee by maintaining good quality if it has to fetch better prices for its beans.

In the last two years, the Nairobi Coffee Exchange has been restricting the supplies in order to stabilise the prices.

While such restriction and retention method may be a boon to the farmers, it is not a good long-term strategy.

It can only stop prices locally from dropping but may not have a significant upward jerk on prices.

But it is a better strategy since it restricts supply to the international market.

Coffee prices are determined by the global trends and consumer demands.

It is now estimated that the coffee growing nations will produce approximately 124 million bags compared with demand of 132 million bags.

And that gives Kenya a chance to take advantage of its position as a producer of Arabica coffee.

Statistics show that coffee growing is on the decline locally as real estate and horticulture continue to chop the coffee fields.

While global production falls and new coffee growing nations like Vietnam continue to rock the market, though with beans that cannot match Kenya’s quality, it is time to stop the running battles at the coffee industry.

First, our industry is a wreck and requires new administrative fillip if it has to take advantage of the current trend.