Honduras Makes Inroads into the Specialty Coffee Market

San Pedro Sula, Honduras (June 15, 2003) - In April, Honduran specialty coffee producers with the help of the Fintrac Centro de Desarrollo de Agronegocios (Fintrac CDA) technical and marketing staff successfully exported specialty coffee to the US after a well known US buyer and international journalist traveled to Honduras at the invitation of Fintrac CDA. Visits to client coffee farms were arranged by Fintrac CDA as part of its ongoing work with the specialty coffee sector in Honduras.

Since January 2002, Fintrac CDA has been providing technical assistance to farmers who grow coffee in high altitude regions with microclimates and has been installing improved processing equipment to improve product quality. While global prices for traditional coffee have plummeted in recent years due to oversupply, the market for specialty coffee has remained strong. Growers who can produce specialty coffee typically receive a premium over traditional coffee prices. Fintrac CDA staff realized that certain farmers in Honduras could increase their incomes by identifying quality coffees, improving harvesting and processing techniques, and effectively marketing product.

Technical and marketing assistance has been provided to clients in the departments of Ocotepeque and Choluteca. "In a relatively short time, we have already seen a marked improvement in harvesting and processing techniques that have resulted in increased prices for our client farmers," reports Ricardo Pineda, Fintrac's Chief Processing Specialist and supervisor of its Honduran specialty coffee program.

Fintrac has aided Honduran coffee producers and processors along all steps of the production and processing chain. Fintrac CDA donated equipment to the Western Union of Coffee Producers, including a complete cupping laboratory, two static dryers, a dehuller, and a sorting belt. This enabled the farmers for the first time to fully process their coffee at the local level as opposed to transporting wet parchment to centralized exporter facilities. Willem Boot, Fintrac CDA consultant and master coffee taster, has traveled to Honduras several times to train local coffee cuppers and to help construct a flavor map for the coffee growing regions. After his most recent visit to Honduras, Mr. Boot commented that "Honduras is building an image as a serious supplier of specialty coffee. The country is a small giant in the world of coffee production."

In addition to providing technical assistance, Fintrac CDA has assisted in marketing Honduran specialty coffee by providing US buyers with samples from farms in Honduras. Fintrac has also created a web site (www.honduras-coffee.com) that provides general information about specialty coffee in Honduras and gives profiles of individual growers and their coffee.