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Colombia’s Main Harvest Coffee Exports Brace Further Disruptions On Container Restrictions: Asoexport

By: Diana Delgado, Contractor

Colombia’s Main Harvest Coffee Exports Brace Further Disruptions On Container Restrictions: Asoexport
 
Author Full Name Diana Delgado
Latin American correspondent
 

Colombia’s Main Harvest Coffee Exports Brace Further Disruptions On Container Restrictions: Asoexport

Coffee Network (Bogota)- Colombia’s coffee exports will be bracing further disruptions during the country’s main harvest as the shortage of containerships in the Pacific coast of Buenaventura will continue and shipping agencies have warned exporters that there will be further restrictions in upcoming coming months, the general manager of the Colombian coffee exporters association Asoexport said.

Speaking with Coffee Network, Gustavo Gómez said coffee growers not only are facing a shortage of containerships in the country’s Pacific, but now shipping lines have announced customers that some of them will not stop on the Pacific port of Buenaventura.

“Right now, there is limited availability of containers in Buenaventura. The terminals are giving appointments to the coffee that have containers. It is no longer by capacity of warehouses but by capacity at containers. So now, coffee exporters must travel to Cartagena or Santa Marta. But at some point, the volumes will increase, and this situation is going to put a strong pressure on Colombian coffee exports,” Gomez said yesterday.

Disruption of shipping containers are once again preventing Colombian coffee to reach its destination since mid-August because some shipping companies are not docking on Colombian Pacific ports, prompting a delay of coffee exports, sources told Coffee Network

Even after some sources have claimed that containership disruption may end in October, Asoexport believes the situation will be critical when the bulk of the country’s main harvest starts in October as international maritime routes such as North America-Asia are paying as much as US$18,000, compared with the US$2,000 that coffee growers pay, prompting shipping lines to avoid coming to Colombia.

“It is important that Buenaventura has as much operation as possible, however what we anticipate is that restrictions may continue during the harvest begins, as there is a strong pressure to send containerships to Asia where they are paying better freights, while some services have been canceled (in Buenaventura) to cover routes from Asia to States,” Gomez noted.

Shipping lines have preferred to set sail empty and reach Asian nations like China where they are paying skyrocketing prices, he said.

Prior to this disruption, Buenaventura used to handle 70% of the country’s total coffee exports. But Buenaventura is today handling only 54%.

Coffee exporters from distant southern provinces in the south of Colombia such as Nariño, Cauca and Huila have opted to ship via Caribbean ports incurring in extra costs of as much as 75% as trucks have to travel about three days to reach Caribbean ports.

That explains why market share of coffee exports through Cartagena ports jumped to 41% as of the first week of September, compared with 35% prior to the disruption.

The market share of coffee exports through Santa Marta ports jumped to 13% as of the first week of September, compared with 5% previously, Gomez noted.  

“It is essential to have greater capacity at Buenaventura. Santa Marta and Cartagena do not have capacity to handle that,” he added.

Colombia picks its main harvest in October-December, contributing with about 65% of the country’s total coffee production. Output is picked in the provinces of Antioquia, Caldas, Risaralda, north of El Valle del Cauca and some areas of Huila.

Restriction on Caribbean ports

As Caribbean ports are facing increased imported cargo, Caribbean ports have also imposed a restriction on food containers.

Caribbean ports have imposed the so-called “free pool”, which means the number of containers suitable for food at terminals must be reduced, putting further pressure on coffee exports from Colombia.

So many restrictions come at the time Colombian coffee growers and exporters get ready to begin picking the bulk of the main harvest amid high international coffee prices and a global shortage of Arabica beans.

“We must export that coffee, and someone must assume that extra cost;” Gomez noted.

Swiss trader Volcafe recently said the global coffee deficit in 2021-2022 will be larger than expected hit by extreme weather conditions in most of the largest coffee producing nations and impacted by the lack of containerships.

The shortage will be 11.9 million bags with global coffee production totaling 163 million bags of 60-kg in the coffee year 2021-2022, while global consumption is seen at 174 million bags, Volcafe said in a report.

Total Arabica global deficit Will be 11.2 million bags in the coffee year 2021-2022 with production expected to reach 83 million bags, while consumption is seen at 95 million bags.

“The worsening situation in container transport is challenging supply chains on the main coffee trade routes, resulting in faster depletion of destination stocks,” said Volcafe.

By Diana Delgado

 

 

  • Coffee

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