Ministry proposes coffee board

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has proposed a National Coffee Co-ordination Board aimed at assisting Government advisors in issuing and implementing policies related to the coffee industry.

According to the ministry, the new board would additionally be responsible for regulating domestic and foreign market prices as well as export activities.

Until recently, despite having become the world’s largest Robusta exporter, the Vietnamese coffee industry had been operating disjointedly, firms doing trade on individual basis instead of in a unified manner.

With foreign businesses expanding into the Vietnamese market, domestic companies have come under increased pressure in buying raw material from local farmers.

Establishing the new board comes at a time when both the local coffee industry and exporters are in need of a new developmental boost.

A Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development report revealed that, in July, only 65,000 tonnes of coffee, valued at US$145 million, were exported, a month-on-month decline of 50,000 tonnes in volume and $105 million in value.

Experts have attributed decreasing volumes to small stockpiles.

Nguyen Nam Hai, general secretary of the Viet Nam Coffee Exporters’ Club, said that small stockpiles had caused companies much trouble as well as delays in exports.

Compared to the first months of this year, current coffee export volumes had declined by 50 per cent, Hai added.

During the first seven months, coffee exports were reported to have hit $2 billion on 930,000 tonnes, an increase of 24 per cent in volume and 92.6 per cent in value thanks to price hikes.

Currently, average export prices stand at nearly $2,200 per tonne, a year-on-year increase of 57 per cent.

This year, insiders have predicted that the industry was capable of producing 1.38-1.44 million tonnes of coffee, an increase of around 30,000 tonnes compared to the Viet Nam Coffee Association forecast. – VNS

Tags: Vietnam Coffee, Vietnam coffee prices