Assessment of the Coffee Industry in Jamaica

摘要

The report assesses the Jamaican coffee industry, especially the non-Blue Mountain coffee sector, with a focus on its potential for expansion and on the constraints thereto. Topics covered include the industry's history, legal and institutional framework, and present status; the role of the Coffee Industry Board and its subsidiaries; deregulation; coffee cooperatives; foreign involvement; and planned development over the next five years. Because Japan purchases around 80% of Jamaican coffee, demand is price inelastic and consistently exceeds supply by a large margin. However, because Jamaican yields are low and production and processing costs are high, the coffee grower's average expected return is 22-23%. With the cost of commercial borrowing at over 35%, coffee is thus a poor investment. Expansion of the coffee industry is constrained by: a shortage of long-term financing at reasonable interest rates, especially for small farmers; high fixed processing costs spread over a low volume of coffee; inadequate roads in coffee producing areas; a shortage of nursery seedlings; and a lack of management and leadership in the non-Blue Mountain cooperatives.