Vietnam government to buy coffee to shore up price

The Vietnamese government is considering buying 200,000 tons of coffee from farmers on the advice of the Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association (VICOFA) after global prices plunged recently.

VICOFA chairman Luong Van Tu said the government should buy the coffee and stockpile it since farmers are rushing to sell their crop from the main harvest season between last October and December to repay loans.

Traders are buying coffee at around VND22 million ($1,128) a ton now.

The government normally steps in only when market prices fall below breakeven level, which is currently estimated at VND18.8 million.

On the London market, the price dropped to $1,283 a ton last Friday for July delivery, a 30 percent fall year on year.

Coffee plants are also harvested during other months in Vietnam and last year’s total output was 1 million tons, according to Phan Huy Thong, deputy head of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Department of Crop Production.

Tags: Vietnam agriculture, Vietnam Coffee, Vietnam coffee price