Indonesia coffee exporters delay shipments, may default

SINGAPORE, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Indonesian coffee exporters have delayed shipments of at least 30,000 tonnes of beans to various buyers and could default on delivery after a sharp drop in London futures prices, dealers said on Wednesday.

Many exporters bought beans from farmers when local prices hovered around 18,000 rupiah a kg ($1.80) two months ago. The price has since dropped nearly 30 percent to 13,000 rupiah, meaning exporters would suffer losses if they shipped out the beans now.

'At least 40,000 tonnes have been contracted, and out of that amount around 30,000 tonnes may not be shipped out at all because of the risk of losing money. They want the (London) price to go back to $2,000,' said a regional dealer.

The beans from Indonesia's main producing province of Lampung on Sumatra have been allocated for delivery to buyers in Europe and the United States. Indonesia is the world's second-largest robusta producer after Vietnam.

London's January robusta contract shed $5 to end at $1,786 a tonne on Tuesday -- not far from a 17-month low of $1,642 hit two weeks ago. The contract rallied to $2,815 in March, its highest for the second month since July 1995.

'We can't confirm it because we haven't received any reports. The association hasn't got explanation from trading houses and exporters,' Suherman Harsono, chairman of the Lampung chapter of the Indonesia Coffee Exporters' Association, told Reuters.

Rumours that local sellers in Lampung are delaying shipments have been circulating in the market in the last few days as coffee prices tumble amid fears of a global recession.

The delays in shipments came after local coffee exporters said they planned to plan to set prices for coffee before shipment, rather than at delivery, to protect themselves from steeply falling values for the commodity..

In Indonesia, coffee exporters normally agree on export commitments but delay their decision on prices until after beans have been delivered.

'We've been hearing reports about defaults from Indonesia. I can't confirm it but I can't deny it either. So far I am okay because we have our office in Lampung that gets beans directly from farmers,' said a dealer at a trading house in Singapore.

Dealers said stock levels were steady between 80,000 and 90,000 tonnes in Lampung, with the harvest having peaked in August, and exporters could further delay shipments if there was no improvement in London prices.

'There's always a danger of default. Exporters are still expecting the market to recover to minimise the losses,' said the regional dealer.

Robusta beans make up around 85 percent of Indonesia's coffee output, estimated at around 450,000 tonnes this year, while the rest is higher-value, aromatic arabica beans.

The International Coffee Organization (ICO (nasdaq: ICOC - news - people )) said the global financial crisis could cut coffee supplies and people could drink more at home.

($1=9,980 rupiah)

(Editing by Kim Coghill)

Three cups of coffee a day makes breasts shrink - study

DRINKING just three cups of coffee a day can make women's breasts shrink, researchers say.

• Coffee drinking can make breasts shrink, study says
• Three cups a day enough to trigger effect
• Breasts shrinkage can increase of every extra cup

Nearly 300 women were surveyed about their bust measurements and how many cups of coffee they drank in an average day.

According to the Swedish researchers, three cups a day was enough to start making breasts shrink, with the effects increasing for every cup drunk.

They said there was a clear link between drinking coffee and smaller breasts, as about half of women possessed a gene shown to link breast size to coffee intake.

"Drinking coffee can have a major effect on breast size," said Helena Jernstroem, a lecturer in experimental oncology at Lund University in Sweden.

"Coffee-drinking women do not have to worry their breasts will shrink to nothing overnight. They will get smaller, but the breasts aren't just going to disappear.

"However, anyone who thinks they can tell which women are coffee drinkers just from their bra measurements will be disappointed. The problem is that there are two measures for a bra - the cup size and the girth - so you wouldn't be able to tell."

It was not all bad news for women, as the researchers also found that regular hits of caffeine could help to cut the risk of breast cancer.

Focus: Uganda

Good Ugandan coffees are of intense character and are unique among East African coffees. Robusta coffee, which is traditionally dry Processed, has a reputation of yielding above average quality. Arabica coffee is of medium quality, and is usually classified under “Columbian milds”. Mild & Hard Arabica. Full bodied with sparkling acidity, sweet distinctive characteristics.

Statistics

Type of coffee:	Arabica, Robusta, Roasted
Volume (MTs 2003):	33,179 MT - Arabica 128,505.88 MT - Robusta
Value ($ 2003):	$24,434,445 - Arabica $80,352,651 - Robusta
Brand names:	Roasted - Star Cafe, Elgon Pride, Ban Cafe
Marketing system:	Direct Sale
Marketing trends:
Past five years:	Fluctuating - Arabica; Increasing - Robusta
Next five years:	Increase in both Arabica and Robusta
Processing:	Wet and dry processing
Harvest season:	Arabica: Oct-Feb: Main crop, Aug Fly crop Robusta: Oct-Feb: Main crop for North Equator May-Aug: Main crop for South Equator
Port of shipment:	Mombasa
Export destinations:	European countries

Uganda is a land-locked country in East Africa, bordering Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo and the Sudan. The country has seen a tremendous rate of progress and development in the past 15 years. Blessed with an ideal climate, Uganda is a lush country with an astounding amount of lakes, wetlands and rivers, and is the source of the mighty River Nile.

This is a geographically and scenically diverse country, dubbed by Winston Churchill as the Pearl of Africa. It straddles the equator and boasts mist-shrouded volcanic mountains, glacier capped peaks, simmering hot springs, semi-arid desert, and rolling fertile hills. There are over 500 forest reserves and a number of national parks and game reserves in the country, providing a safe habitat for this country’s array of unique wildlife. Recognised for its wide range of primates (chimpanzees, numerous monkeys and the rare mountain gorilla) and its impressive bird list which tops more than 1,000 species, Uganda is also fast becoming a popular eco-tourism destination for the naturalist and wildlife enthusiast.

Uganda has a long tradition of coffee production - dating back more than 100 years - and is now ranked 2nd in Africa and 7th in the world for coffee production. It is the leading exporter of organic coffee in Africa. It is widely accepted that while Ethiopia is the original source of Arabica coffee, Uganda is the source of Robusta.
Centuries ago, Ugandan warriors would chew the bean or cherry before going into battle. This would make them feel strong, brave and invincible. The variety of wild robusta coffees still growing
in Uganda’s rainforests are thought to be some of the rarest
examples of naturally occurring coffee trees anywhere in the
world.

Coffee has been the largest single foreign exchange earner for the country since the 1970’s, and is based entirely on smallscale
production. Robusta coffee accounts for 94% of the output, while Arabica coffee accounts for the remaining 6%. There are approximately 500,000 coffee farms in Uganda. About 25% of the entire country’s population, is dependent on coffee for their livelihood. Other exports from Uganda include cotton, fish, tea, tobacco, maize, beans, and sesame.

Region: Uganda - Another Ugandan coffee brand penetrates western market

Tom Magumba

Kampala

Local coffee farmers could be destined for a bright future as more local coffee brands get nods from top European markets following a break through by another brand. Uganda Mountain Coffee, a 100 percent organic, AAA Arabica coffee a product of Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) and Heifer International partnership was launched last week in Boston, USA.

According to a report from UCDA this would ensure that Ugandan coffee farmers own equity in the venture while Heifer International shall use 2 percent of the price to support the livelihood of over 5 million coffee farmers in Uganda. This becomes the second top brand to sell in Europe after Good African Coffee conquered Waitrose one of the largest supermarket chain across the United Kingdom by a slow effort of a local entrepreneur Mr Andrew Rugasira.

Coffee Legends Inc a company famous for trading and roasting coffee in the US in a press statement has already announced the debut of the new brand to be sold throughout the northeast of the country. “We were extremely selective about the brand to ensure the most superior product for our customers and we are excited for them to sample just how smooth and enjoyable organic coffee can be” said Mr Joe Steinberg the proprietor of Coffee Legends Inc.

Mr Henry Ngabirano UCDA executive director described this as a break through for the Ugandan farmers saying it was a result of hard work and top quality practices to produce good coffee beans. “We are committed to see the farmers fairly compensated for their industriousness and happy to be part of Heifer international’s effort in Africa and worldwide,” he said in a statement.

The development comes on the heels of a meeting held in Gainesville, USA on Organic coffee production, in which UCDA assured participants that Uganda has the capacity to supply the US market with pure organic coffee. Uganda coffee officials promised to train farmers in good agricultural practices putting emphasis on the dictates of the market and working towards formalising the Quality Certification Services agreement.

Last month Uganda participated in the 20th Uganda North American Association (UNAA) Convention that took place in Orlando, Florida. US based Ugandans served free brewed coffee throughout the convention period at the Uganda stall. The aroma of the brewed coffee attracted over 500 guests to the Uganda Stand who made various enquiries on the availability and accessibility of Ugandan coffee on the US market.

A September coffee report from UCDA shows that the local coffee fraternity has received a special invitation from the first Secretary to the Italian Embassy in Uganda to show case in the Triestespresso Expo 2008 due to take place in November. The expo is expected to expose Ugandan coffee exporters to global counterparts from Central and Eastern Europe, Mediterranean and the Middle East, the main buyers of Uganda coffee.

Nestle to invest over $200 mln in Russian coffee factory

MOSCOW (AFP) — Swiss food giant Nestle said on Monday it would boost its Russian operations by investing 240 million Swiss francs (212 million dollars, 158 million euros) in a coffee factory in the south of the country.

"Nestle today announced its intention to invest 240 million CHF (Swiss francs) francs into the expansion of its coffee factory in Timashevsk in the Russian Krasnodar region," the company said in a statement distributed at a Moscow investment conference.

The company said it had agreed its expansion plans with the administration of Krasnodar region, located in the south of Russia on the Black Sea, in a deal that comes despite tense relations between Moscow and the West.

Nestle has about 11,000 employees in Russia, where it started operations 13 years ago and is a leading provider of chocolate, coffee, ice cream and infant nutrition products.