Good News For Indian Coffee Exports .

The Coffee Board has recently published figures that will make those in the Indian coffee industry smile. Figures are up for June 2011 by a fairly significant amount. How much? Apparently, there has been an increase of nearly 55% – that equates to some 40,000 tonnes. In June 2010, the figure was just under 26,000 tonnes.

India has experienced a relatively strong worldwide demand, which accounts for the increase. The country’s main export markets are in countries such as Italy, Germany, Belgium, Spain and Russia.
India is famous for its ‘mild coffees’, which are grown in the shade – in fact the country is one of the only ones in the world to grow coffee in this way. The result is that the coffee is relatively mild without too much acidity, but also possessing a full-bodied taste.

The cultivation method uses a two tier canopy to give the shade and there are almost 50 different types of ‘shade trees’ to be found on the various plantations. The purpose of the trees is to stop soil erosion on slops and also to recycle nutrients from deeper levels of the soil. Additionally, these trees are a form of protection for the coffee plants against temperature fluctuations and provide an ecosystem for various flora and fauna.

There are a variety of climates within India and plantations in these different areas produce different types of coffee. For example, coffee farms on high elevations produce Arabicas, whereas coffee grown in warm and humid climes tend to produce Robustas, a bean that prefers this atmosphere.

Source : worldcoffeenews.com