Lead Stories

Jamaica's coffee sector got a major boost yesterday with the signing of a historic agreement which Dr Christopher Tufton, minister of agriculture and fisheries, is hailing as a significant step forward for the industry.

The country is to send 7,000 kilogrammes of coffee, valued at US$1.7 million (approximately $150 million), to China over a 12-month period under the agreement signed between the Coffee Industry Board (CIB) and the Hangzhou City Coffee & Western Cuisine Association.

Under the memorandum of understanding with the Chinese entity, which represents some 800 cafés, coffee roasters and specialists within China, it was agreed that Hangzhou City Coffee & Western Cuisine Association would be the exclusive importer of Jamaican coffee, including Blue Mountain Coffee, into China, initially for a period of two years.

Fallout in export market

Tufton said the occasion marked a major step for the local coffee industry, which was rocked this year by fallout in the nation's largest traditional export market.

"We have over the years depended, to a large extent, on the Japanese market for the disposal of our coffee beans. Japan accounted for, for many years, up to 90 per cent of our Blue Mountain beans," Tufton said. "This year, we found ourselves in a situation where a fallout in that marketplace left us with excess capacity and we had to recalibrate out strategy in the interest of diversifying our marketplace."

He added: "We believe that the sophistication and growing affluence of the Chinese marketplace lends itself to a quality brand in a more expansive way, which the Blue Mountain and Jamaican coffee represents. The taste for coffee and quality coffee in China, based on our information, is growing. Therefore, it is an opportune time to position ourselves to take advantage of that marketplace."

Meanwhile, George Lu, chief negotiator for the Hangzhou City Coffee & Western Cuisine Association, told The Gleaner that the agreement represents a major breakthrough for his organisation, given the difficulty in sourcing genuine Jamaica coffee.

"It is important for us to have access to real coffee, premium like your Blue Mountain," Lu said. "A lot of coffee we receive we believe is fake Blue Mountain, so it is important for us to have access to the best coffee in the world. Also, we will crack down on those fake coffees."