THE PHILIPPINE COFFEE Expo 2020 this April 2-3 is aiming to reinvigorate coffee production in the Philippines through the Expo’s series of lectures involving Industry Sustainability, Climate Change Mitigation, Quality Improvement and Production Technology.
The model farmer of the Balutakay Coffee Farmer Association (BACOFA) Marivic Dubria emphasizes on the global need for coffee through her experiences abroad.
“When I attended a coffee expo in Washington D.C., my eyes were opened to the demand for coffee because one buyer at the expo wanted me to produce 20 tonnes in a month but I had to decline since local producers have no idea of what the demand for coffee really is,” Dubria said in the vernacular.
In the late 18th century the Philippines ranked as one of the major exporters of coffee in the Philippines but this has declined over the years due to farmers switching to other crops.
To date, the Philippines is the 4th largest coffee consumer in the world but it imports 93% of its coffee from Vietnam, Brazil and other coffee producing countries. Because of this, the Philippine Coffee Expo 2020 seeks to convince local farmers to consider cultivating world-class coffee.
“This coffee expo is very exciting because farmers will join the capping competition and it will convince farmers to sustainably produce coffee that is consistent in quality,” Dubria said in the vernacular.
The Chief of Party for the PhilCafe Project of the Agriculture Cooperative Development International Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance (ACDI VOCA) TJ Ryan is looking forward to the positive impact of the Philippine Coffee Expo 2020 to local farmers.
“It’s an opportunity for farmers to learn – they will be exposed to a number of presentations or technical presentations regarding farming, climate change, soil nutrition, coffee quality so the whole slew of coffee-related topics will benefit them,” Ryan said. (By Kevin Caro)
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