Media Release
15th October 2009
Coffee Production Improving
Coffee is a sensitive cash crop and affecting 400,000 householda and over 2.5 million rural peopole and all news relating to it is vulnerable to its stakeholders.
The Coffee Industry Corporation (CIC) Ltd has rebutteed a recent misleading media report attributed to Henry Mamp stating the "coffee production continues to drop." The confusing statement cam from a junior CIC officer based in Mr. Hagen who took up on himself to portray a bad image of coffee industry in PNG which he was mandated to promote.
"Coffee production has been improving since the drastic drop in 2006 due to physiological stress caused by the climate change factors and not declining" said CIC Chief Executive Officer, Mr Ricky Mitio.
He admitted that indeed Papua New Guinea is a small player in the global market, but PNG coffee is rated among the top five or six best quality coffees in the world.
Coffee generates about K400 million for the country and was the largest foreign exchange earner in the agriculture sector until only recently wehen oil palm took over. However, PNG's coffee industry brok its own export earnings record when it scored its highest earning of K509 million for the calendar year 2008. The previous figure was K45 million achieved in 2005.
Unlike oil palm where the bulk of the production is derived from estates, PNG's coffee production is from its smallholder who make up 80% of the total 1.1 million bags production output.
The National Government through the much publicized National Agriculture Development Plan (NADP) earmarked K3 million for pilot coffee rehabilitation in three districts of the three major coffee producing provinces in the country and not all 15 provinces as stated in the media release.
The districts are Obura/Wonenara in the Eastern Highlands Province, Anglimp/South Waghi in Western Highlands Province and Kundiawa/Gembogl in the Simbu Province.
These districts are currently undertaking the District By District Smallholder Village Coffee Rehabilitation Program. The Program is envisioned to 'grow the economy through coffee' by rehabilitating senile coffee trees to encourage a healthy crop and a boost in production.
"Coffee production in the country will continue to increase given favourable weather conditions and committee efforts by all stakeholders in the coffee production chain," said a determined CIC CEO.
Mr Mitio urged all coffee industry stakeholders to continue their current efforts in the industry and not be distracted by such misleading and misquoted media reports.
"The coffee industry is still alive and well and joint efforts and resource mobilization amongst stakeholders is needed to tap into lucrative specialy markets and to achieve value-added income," encouraged Mitio. CIC is determined to achieve this focus under its Strategic Plan. In terms of world ranking PNG is only a small producer. Its ranking has no material impact on the global trade. There is nothing for PNG to worry about concluded Mr Mitio.
R M MITIO, ML
Chief Executive Officer
Updated: Friday, December 4, 2009
