January Honduras Coffee Exports Decline 18% 2021 Central America Coffee Export Forecast Reduced by 10.7%

Honduras Coffee Industry Faces Devastating Impact from Hurricanes and Pandemic

The Honduran National Coffee Institute (IHCAFE) had originally projected Honduras coffee exports for the 2020/21 season to reach 6.3 million bags (60 kg per bag). However, in November 2020, hurricanes ETA and LOTA struck consecutively, causing significant damage to Honduras' coffee trees while simultaneously accelerating the spread of coffee leaf rust spores. The destruction from these hurricanes, combined with the spread of leaf rust disease, will have long-term impacts on Honduras coffee production, export volumes, and coffee quality.

Following the hurricane strikes, IHCAFE revised its 2020/21 Honduras coffee export projections downward by 11% to 5.6 million bags. Although this represents a reduction from initial estimates, it still marks a 2% increase compared to last year's Honduras coffee exports of 5.5 million bags.

According to coffee data released by IHCAFE on February 1st, Honduras coffee exports in January 2021 decreased by 18% compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, total Central American coffee exports amounted to 590,481 bags, representing an 82% reduction from 718,886 bags during the same period last year.

Miguel Pon, Executive Director of the Honduran Coffee Exporters Association, stated: "The reduction in January exports is due to the continued spread of COVID-19, with multiple countries maintaining import and export restrictions. Additionally, global market demand for coffee has not yet recovered, and there remains an oversupply situation with unsold Central American coffee beans from last year's exports accumulating in the market."

In the February 1st data release, IHCAFE also revised its 2020/21 Central American coffee export projections downward by 10.7% to 5,606,871 bags.

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