Production went from 30 bushels per acre in the 2000-01 harvest to 23 in 2013, well below the current global average of 30 bushels.
Currently the average coffee harvest in Costa Rica is 23 bushels per acre, and in some areas of the country the average has fallen to as little as 15 bushels of fruit per hectare.
Nacion.com reports that "... The main cause of this problem is the age of the coffee plants.
European and American companies who buy specialty coffee in electronic auctions are losing ground to Asian buyers, who in auctions for top grains from markets such as Costa Rica and Guatemala, are pushing up prices to record levels.
Strong growth in coffee consumption in countries such as South Korea and Japan, coupled with the large purchasing power of its inhabitants has boosted demand for gourmet coffee and other special varieties.
Projections are that the high earnings achieved in the last harvest may not be repeated once production recovers in Brazil and Central America overcomes the problem of rust.
The recovery of Colombian coffee production is due to several factors, including improved planting, renovation of 3,051 million coffee trees and problems faced in other producing countries.
The price of futures reached the highest level in the last 32 months and market analysts project that in November there will be increases of between 10% and 12% in the retail price in USA.
On October 5, the future price of Arabica coffee up to December rose by 6.9% to $2,208 on the ICE Futures market in New York, the highest increase in active contract seen since April 22. The price then reached $2,255, the highest since January 20, 2012.
Prices fluctuated sharply in August, as observed in the compound of the ICO indicator price, which fell 10 cents and then went back up 12 cents at the end of the month.
From the Coffee Market Report August 2014 by the International Coffee Organization (ICO):
Prices fluctuated significantly during August, with the ICO composite indicator
dropping by 10 cents before jumping back up another 12 cents by the end of the month.
With 30 days left until the end of the 2013/2014 harvest, sales from El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Costa Rica are lower than in the previous crop by 56%, 12%, 15% and 10%, respectively.
South American producers in Colombia and Peru were the only ones who achieved positive results in sales of the current crop, with growth in the harvest in respect to 2012/2013 of 22% and 5.5%, respectively.
A plan has started which includes the distribution of six million coffee plants as part of a recovery strategy for the sector after the attack of rust last year.
The Ministry of Agriculture informed Laprensagrafica.com that "... These six million plants may represent some 2,000 or 3,000 hectares of re-stocking of coffee in the country ..." and they will start to distribute them from 2015.
Up to June 2014 foreign exchange earnings from grain sales abroad were $438 million, 6.9% less than in the same month in 2013.
Data from the Central Bank of Guatemala indicates that "... between October 2013 and August 2014 sales of the aromatic totaled 2,917,911 bags of 60 kilos (132 pounds), while in the previous harvest they were 3,463,541 bags which is a difference of 545 630 bags".
The renovation plan which includes the distribution of 1,260,000 coffee seedlings in the provinces of Colon, Panama Oeste, Cocle, Veraguas, Ngäbe Bugle and Chiriqui has began.
The purpose of the renovation plan being implemented by the government is to replace coffee trees that are 30 to 40 years old, starting with the province of Chiriqui.
The Association of Coffee Producers in Renacimiento, Chiriquí, informed Panamaamerica.com.pa that "...
Coffee from a single-origin is beginning to position itself as a premium choice over coffee blends from multiple sources which are offered by coffee shops worldwide.
From a statement issued by the Foreign Trade Promotion Office of Costa Rica (Procomer):
Dunkin Donuts is intensifying its participation in the search of a quality coffee. Recently it offered a new packaged roasted Colombian coffee certified by the Rainforest Alliance, which is the first single-origin coffee to be sold by this coffee chain.
The initiative which the government intends to make law aims to support the coffee sector with technical assistance and help with the promotion in the international market.
The proposal by the Ministry of Agricultural Development in Panama provides for the incorporation of producers, traders and other stakeholders in the coffee sector, to promote development of the activity in the country.
Increased purchasing power has triggered the consumption of coffee in the leading producers in the world, Colombia, Brazil and Vietnam, raising its international price.
The three countries which together produce 60% of the grains consumed in the world, are increasing their local consumption of coffee, putting pressure on the export supply and raising grain prices around the world.
60% of coffee plantations were renewed between early 2009 and June 2014, reducing the average age of plantations from 12 to 7 years.
The negative effects of the climate phenomenon La Niña and the rust blight in Colombian coffee plantations between 2009 and 2012 led the industry to implement a policy of conversion of plantations, a process that was completed in June 2014 with the renovation of 575 thousand hectares of coffee nationwide.
The future price of coffee has reached its lowest level in the last 5 months in response to an in increase in the production of grain in Brazil.
The slowdown in demand in the northern hemisphere due to the arrival of summer and the grain harvest season in Brazil in July explain part of the reduction in future prices on the international market.
Christian Wolthers, president of Wolthers Douque, an importer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, told Bloomberg.com that "... 'this month we expect a significant increase in supply, while in the north people reduce their coffee consumption and there is less activity on the part of roasters.'"
Asian companies bought 16 pounds of gourmet coffee from a farm in El Progreso during the International Cup of Excellence auction.
The batch of coffee which achieved the highest price paid since the international Cup of Excellence auction began comes from the farm Kalibus de Sierra in San Cristobal Acasaguastlán, El Progreso.
"... the companies GSC International from Korea and Shanghai Borong International Trading from China joined forces to buy the lot from the estate. These companies also bought coffee from the farm El Injerto 1 in Huehuetenango for U.S. $20.30 per pound. "