Increased imports of coffee from countries such as Nicaragua, Guatemala and Peru have led the production sector to revive a proposal made in 2011 that would require companies to indicate whether packaged coffee is national or purchased from abroad, reports Costa Rican daily La Nacion.
However roasters state that most imports are not due to an issue of price, but a shortage in the local market … Ronald Peters, director of the Costa Rican Coffee Institute – ICAFE, representing producers, “… reported that the entity has no control over imported grain and doubted the quality of the product, as he says it is brought in at the lowest price.”
In an article posted on Nacion.com “… Peters said that between January and May this year it is estimated that coffee imports totaled about 95,000 hundredweight (cwt, or bags of 46 kilos), while in the same period of 2013 only 11,747 cwt was imported. ”
The president of the National Chamber Coffee Roasters, José Manuel Hernando … “cautioned that objections have already been submitted their to the Ministry of Economy and Trade. “They can make the rules, but this is a barrier to trade.”
Source: http://www.centralamericadata.com/en/article/home/Costa_Rica_Imports_Half_the_Coffee_It_Consumes
