Coffea
Letter: Growing Coffee
IPN Opinion article
Letter to the editor examining fundamental causes of the "global coffee crisis"
Who\'s Really to Blame for Low Coffee Prices?
IPN Opinion article
Behind closed doors in late May, representatives of the World Bank, Oxfam, Greenpeace and the International Coffee Organization met to plot the future of 25 million poor farmers. These groups are ballyhooing the fact that world-wide coffee prices have fallen to a 30-year low.
The culprit? According to these groups, it is profiteering by multinational companies, who purchase 50% of the world\'s coffee, and overproduction of poorer-quality coffee by Vietnam.
\'Fair\' trade is about empowerment
IPN Opinion article
Sir, In your editorial \"Bitter coffee\" (September 19) you suggest that Oxfam\'s pressure on companies will help poor coffee farmers. However, Oxfam\'s definition of \"fair\" trade is to impose quality standards set by the International Coffee Organisation which, by increasing costs for multinationals, will help small coffee producers but disadvantage poor farmers, consumers and companies alike.
Will the destruction of coffee stocks save Kenyan farmers?
IPN Opinion article
The decline in coffee earnings has contributed to low productivity in what was once Kenya's 'black gold'. Coffee berry diseases, leaf rust, leached soils, high input and marketing costs has made Kenyan farmers to invest less in this sector. Political interference has virtually rendered the producers of this vital commodity helpless.
Kenya is known for its fine quality coffees, the majority being the Mild Arabica with 60% produced by small holders and 40% by estates. Kenyan farmers are grappling daily with the imbalance that makes it difficult to afford the finished product of what they produce and earn a fair income. The news of a flooded coffee market spells doom to local farmers. Will the destruction of 5 million bags in stock stimulate the market for this product?
