Brazil, the world’s largest coffee exporter saw 3.06 million bags exported in March. This is 2.7 per cent lower compared to the same month last year, according to, exporters association Cecafe, which produces the figures in their monthly report, and reverses the picture from February where the country had seen a 9 per cent increase for the same month in 2020.
It was only a month ago that the country reported the best month since 2017 for exports, with 3,279 million bags shipped.
Exports of arabica in March, fell to 2.7 million bags, a 6.3 per cent drop over the period, but robusta bucked the trend with an increase of 38% to 352,735 bags, according to the company.
Nicolas Rueda, President of the Cecafe said that despite the small reduction in volume, he was overall positive about the sector, which, he said, was dealing with challenges.
As an example, Rueda cited the continued problem with the supply of containers for coffee exporters who are having to adapt to the logistic challenges and plan accordingly.
Finally, the Cecafe President suggested that the new season, which starts in July will present a much smaller crop since it is the off-year in the production cycle.
