MILAN – Robusta coffee shipments from Cameroon for the 2012/2013 season to the end of August were down by more than 52% on year to 13,516 tonnes, reports the National Cocoa and Coffee Board showed.
According to data published on Monday, exports of 1,041 tonnes of Robusta coffee in August, compared with 3,704 tonnes in August the previous season.
The Board did not provide any explanation for the slump in exports.
The figures also showed that Cameroon exported 2,513 tonnes of Arabica coffee for the season to end-August, up 25.5% from 2,002 tonnes in the same period of the previous season.
Cameroon grows both Robusta and arabica coffee. The Robusta season runs from December 1 to November 30, and the Arabica season runs from October 1 to September 30.
Tanzania‘s coffee prices fell at auction last week following the trend in New York and London, the Tanzania Coffee Board (TCB) said on Tuesday.
TCB said 31,577 60-kg bags were offered at the latest sale and that 28,782 bags were purchased. At the previous sale, a total of 17,913 60-kg bags had been offered for sale, with 15,547 bags sold.
All robusta coffee bags on offer at the auction were sold, indicating high demand.
With an estimated crop of 1.017 million bags, Tanzania is Africa’s fourth-largest coffee producer after Ethiopia, Uganda and Ivory Coast. It produces mainly Arabica and some Robusta coffee.
The East African coffee is normally packed in 60-kg bags, but the prices are quoted for quantities of 50 kg, the remaining amount used for grading.
