Study: Drop in coffee production

COFFEE production in the country has been declining in the last 10 years as figures from a study has shown.
“From 1998 to 2018, the coffee harvest area and quantity of coffee produced in PNG decreased by 33 per cent and 28 per cent respectively,” a National Research Institute (NRI) report stated.
The decline was a result of the challenges coffee growers’ face – such as having inadequate facilities for processing coffee, inadequate extension services and limited access to finance.
The challenges could, however, be addressed by the strategies proposed by NRI deputy director for research Prof Euegene Ezebilo and Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta’s Prof Carolyn Afolami by banking on the fact that “PNG has suitable environmental and climatic conditions for growing high quality coffee”.
In their report, Strategies for improving coffee production and processing in PNG: Lessons from the top five coffee-producing countries, they concluded that “political will” on the part of the government was crucial in taking the coffee industry to the next level.
“And this can be done by: promoting effective extension services and training coffee growers on modern systems and innovations in producing coffee; provide funds for research and farm management practices; and, support farmers through loans facility at low interest rates,” NRI said in a statement.
“Policy makers, planners and agricultural managers are urged to take heed of the findings to make informed decisions on boosting the yield and quality of this commodity.”