Milne Bay keeping coffee alive

 By MALUM NALU

MILNE Bay provincial administration is keeping its fledgling coffee industry alive by buying coffee from growers, albeit at a loss, according to provincial agriculture advisor James Duks.

This money is from the K295,000 the provincial administration has allocated for coffee development in the province in 2013.

He says this is the only way to keep to interest of growers going until the industry is fully revived.

“Basically, up to 20 tonnes a year is produced annually in Milne Bay,” Duks told The National in Alotau.

“Most of the coffee does not get out, we have quality problems, and we can’t get premium prices for our coffee because the quality is poor.

“Last year, for instance, we made a shipment.

“We spent K7,000 on coffee and only got K3,000 back.

“We made a loss of K4,000.

“We did that to create interest, we’re not concerned about making money.

“A problem is not always a problem, it’s a solution.

“Although we made a loss, we said we’ll keep on buying coffee.”

Duks said there was so much coffee in rural Milne Bay that could not be transported out.

“As we speak, there are 13 tonnes in Daga, northern Milne Bay, earmarked for us but we can’t transport it down,” he said.

“We don’t have a plane to go there, and we have logistical problems.

“The airstrip has closed.

“Nevertheless, we believe things will happen, and our Alotau MP Charles Abel has also been buildings roads into rural areas.”

Duks said regular shipping services between Alotau, Lae, and Port Moresby also left a lot to be desired.

“Lutheran Shipping used to service Alotau before,” he said.

“Politics, however, took its toll and Lutheran Shipping was stopped. 

“We still need a reliable cargo carrier along the shipping route from here to Port Moresby 

and Lae.”

Duks said the training of 55 coffee growers at Bubuletta outside Alotau last Friday – also paid for by the provincial administration – marked a new beginning for coffee in Milne Bay, which was vibrant, until the onset of coffee leaf rust in the mid 1980s.

“As far as coffee is concerned, we have trained our growers, equipped them with pulpers, and we’re now going to identify the best farmers and have them as model farmers,” he said.