The coffee leaf fungus has affected most of Dominican coffee crop in the past couple of years. As a result the Dominican Republic, traditionally a major coffee exporter, has gone from exporting 500,000 quintals of coffee to less than 90,000 in 2013. Today it is importing more than 40% of the local consumption, according to the participants in the Saving Coffee Meeting that took place in Peralta, Azua last weekend, 28-29 June 2014. The rust-colored Roya fungus has destroyed many plantations, both new and old. <\/p>\n
Dominican Coffee Council (Codocafe) spokesman Maximo Gomez said that the rust has affected 90% of plantations because they were aging. He said that the fungus could be controlled with new methods and care, fumigation and fungicides and called for the plantations to be renovated. <\/p>\n
The coffee farmer population has now decreased to 40,000, from 271,000. UASD professor Milton Martinez criticized the lack of a coffee support culture. He also criticized the effects of taxation on the sector and joined Gomez in calling for support to renovate the country’s coffee plantations. <\/p>\n
For more in Spanish: <\/p>\n
http:\/\/www.listin.com.do\/economia-and-negocios\/2014\/7\/1\/328210\/Realizan-encuentro-para-salvar-caficultura-de-RD<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The coffee leaf fungus has affected most of Dominican coffee crop in the past couple of years. As a result the Dominican Republic, traditionally a major coffee exporter, has gone from exporting 500,000 quintals of coffee to less than 90,000 in 2013. Today it is importing more than 40% of the local consumption, according to … <\/p>\n