Indian Coffee Ripe for Success .

Coffee exports from India increased by 76 per cent in terms of volume during the first half of the financial year ending March 2011, according to the most recent figures released by the country-owned Coffee Board.

During the April-September 2010 period, the country’s coffee output stood at a reported 1.56 lakh tonnes, compared with the 89,140 tonne export volume of the same period during 2009.

In value terms, this was the difference between India generating US$334 million during the first half of the current fiscal year, in contrast to the US$1.91 million recorded for the previous year.

With the fresh Arabica crop now hitting the market, analysts predicted that the country’s output for the second half of the year would be far improved by comparison with the same timeframe a year ago.

Not only is India’s Arabica coffee ouput expected to increase, but also its Robusta crop is predicted to see a greater yield this year, with production for the period anticipated to be around the 2.08 lakh tonne mark, compared with 1.98 lakh tonnes last year. As such, coffee of the Robusta variety will generate the majority of India’s projected output – expected to hit 3.08 lakh tonnes for the current year, the lion’s share of which will be sent to the country’s export markets.

In terms of India’s strongest coffee growing region, this is Karnataka, which generates around 70 per cent of the country’s total production. Output here is forecast to rise from the 2.05 lakh tonnes of the last crop year, to 2.19 lakh tonnes this year.

Source : coffeethings.co.uk