Honduras 08-09 Coffee Output Down 9.3% To Jul 29 At 2.978M Bags

By Maja Wallengren,
Dow Jones Newswires;
mwallengren@hotmail.com

Honduran coffee production from the current 2008-09 harvest through July 29 was down 9.6% at 2,978,353 60-kilogram bags, the Honduran Coffee Institute, or Ihcafe, said Wednesday.

This compares with Honduran coffee production of 3,282,242 bags from the start of the crop cycle Oct. 1 to July 29 in the last 2007-08 crop cycle, an Ihcafe official told Dow Jones Newswires.

The drop in registered production to date confirms reports by traders and exporters that the harvest is coming in late after a combination of heavy unseasonable rains, strong winds and frost delayed the maturation of beans and also damaged the crop.

The export and processing of already harvested 2008-09 crop also reportedly have been affected by electricity cuts and a curfew imposed following a bloodless coup June 28. Registered Honduran coffee production through July 10 was down 8% on the year-ago pace.

Ihcafe figures for registered production only include production graded fit for exports and don’t include the lower-quality beans traditionally used for local consumption, which make up about 300,000 bags.

Honduran export and production figures are revised throughout the year, up to two crop cycles after the figures are released.