Coffee industry

Quality Control Officer, Enos Dum was in Sydney, Australia to undergo various exams to meet the requirements of the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) to pass and renew his Q-Grader license.

For many, understanding a good cup of coffee is that it just tastes good to the mouth when you drink it. However, for a trained person, who tastes the overall attributes of a good quality coffee. It is a skill that one has to master to pass arduous and stringent exams to qualify as a Q-Arabica Grader.

The newly appointed Coffee Minister, William Bando has also outlined his vision for empowering rural communities through coffee cultivation.

Addressing Program Managers and senior staff of the Coffee Industry Corporation (CIC) in Goroka last week, Minister Bando emphasized the need to transform coffee into a cornerstone of the nation's economy, particularly benefiting marginalized groups and the youth.

The key initiatives outlined include:

The challenges must be addressed to move the country’s coffee industry forward into the future.

The National Research Institute (NRI) Spotlight Volume 16, Issue 9: “Prospects of coffee production and initiatives for addressing challenges faced by coffee growers in Papua New Guinea” by Associate Professor Eugene Ezebilo, the Deputy Director for Research at the PNG NRI highlights the opportunity for coffee production in PNG, challenges that coffee growers in Eastern Highlands, Western Highlands and Morobe Provinces face and some potential ways to address the challenges.

However, due to the Coffee Berry Borer, the annual exports is 840,000 bags of 60 kg coffee.

"Continuing with exporters, plantations and buyers intervention in supporting farmers, we can beat the figure of 1 million bags in 2023," says FSA president Wilson Thompson.

He said based on FSA assessment with getting exporters doing more extension and training, getting farmers to put up nursery or use the old system of transplanting self propagated coffee into the gardens, it would mean working hard.

CBBs are spreading rapidly across coffee growing provinces, destroying coffee cherries and threatening the coffee industry. These 1.5mm black insects bore into the coffee cherry and destroy the valuable coffee bean inside. As a result, exporters are reporting lower quality and quantity of crops. CBB infestation rates in the Jiwaka, Western Highlands and Eastern Highlands Provinces are very high, causing a drastic drop in incomes for smallholder coffee farmers.

But she believes there is lot more to be done for coffee in PNG, especially in funding support and extension services in the coffee value chain.

Nellie Varmari, the owner operator of the Central Mamina Organic Coffee was speaking during the official contract signing between the Bawaf Saab Wafi Golpu SML 10 landowners, Amphibian Aerospace Industries (AAI) Australia, and the Interserco Corporation of Vietnam for the purchase and use of Albatross sea planes in PNG at Stanley Hotel in Port Moresby yesterday.   

Founder and chairman of Hamtai Coffee Group, Den Anas, said Menyamya has been producing coffee since 1950 with no district, provincial or national government support.

However, instead of sitting back and begging for support, they have moved another step forward by insuring their prized commodity.

Anas described his vision of coffee production in Menyamya as a “100 dream”.

“Mi mangi ples, mi stap lo bik bus tasol mi kisim 100 driman,” he said. “Mi no go lo skul, mi no pinisim UPNG, mi stap lo bik bus na mi kisim wanpla 100 driman blo mi.

Coffee is one of the cash crops selected and to signify this, a first in the world Coffee Ministry was created.

The Southern Highlands Provincial Government has allocated K20m to build a coffee factory in Mendi.

Governor William Powi announced this during the Provincial Assembly meeting last Thursday.

In support of the initiative, the Nipa Kutubu District under the leadership of Dr Billy Joseph has embarked on growing coffee in the district.

Dr Billy urged all the people in the district to start growing coffee and earn a living.

Close to 90% of coffee in Papua New Guinea is sourced from smallholder farmers and these suppliers face many challenges, including the remoteness of the farms, deteriorating road infrastructure and the increasing cost of logistics.

The biggest challenge being the lack of liquidity in the market. Coffee is a cash intensive crop, and exporters pay cash to farmers for their crop, which they cannot recoup until the coffee reaches the end buyer. This could take weeks or months.