Brazil, the world’s largest coffee producer and exporter, expects to harvest 54.3 million bags of coffee in 2023 – up by 6.8% on the previous year.
If completed, this would be the third-largest coffee harvest in Brazil’s history, following on from the harvests in 2018 and 2020, according to representative body Companhia Nacional de Abastecimento (CONAB), part of the country’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply (MAPA).
The body highlighted that harvest forecasts are supported by a 1.9% increase in the area cultivated for coffee, which now covers some 2.2 million hectares.
Arabica Coffee
Significantly, the projections indicate that arabica coffee is showing signs of recovery, with production of the most popular variety of coffee expected to reach 38 million bags (at 60kg each) in 2023.
This, in turn, is due to an increase of 2.4% in the cultivated area and 13.9% in productivity, year on year, influenced by more favourable weather conditions, compared to the last two harvests.
Robusta Coffee
On the other hand, the production of robusta coffee is expected to fall by 11%, with a harvest forecast of 16.2 million bags, due to adverse weather conditions in the region where it is grown.
Despite the increase in production, Brazil’s coffee exports are expected to fall by 10.8% in 2023, to 22.9 million bags, due to a scarcity of stocks at the beginning of the season.
However, on a positive note, exports recovered in August were 29.4% higher than in the same month of 2022.
Overall, the Brazilian coffee industry is expected to have a strong year in 2023, with production and exports both increasing, CONAB noted.
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