Vietnamese coffee businesses and farmers have agreed to begin trading on the direct farm produce trading floor, which is scheduled to open in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak, the country’s coffee capital, on Dec. 12.

Nguyen Tuan Ha, Director of the Dak Lak Coffee Trading Floor, stated that the floor’s operation will be aimed at establishing a transparent and dedicated market for domestic and foreign organisations and individuals involved in coffee trading, bringing it in line with current world trends.

An estimated 100 businesses will be represented on the trading floor.

Ha added that there will be a total storage capacity of 30,000 tonnes of coffee at the trading floor, which will be available for farmers to consign their products ahead of any transactions.

According to the Vietnam Cacao and Coffee Association, Vietnam is expected to earn 2 billion USD from coffee exports as the price of Vietnamese coffee has been rising steadily. The country exported 1.6 billion USD of coffee during the first nine months of the year, a year-on-year increase of 10 percent, despite export volume decreasing by 22 percent.

However, farmers and businesses have been worried by fluctuations in coffee prices. In the past, coffee farmers suffered losses when coffee prices dropped and frequently cut down their coffee plants, leaving them with no produce for sale when the prices rose again.

To remedy this situation, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development approved a strategy to maintain coffee acreage at around 500,000 ha, helping to focus on improving quality, boosting consumption and ensuring sustainable development of these key farm products.

Coffee is Vietnam’s second-largest grossing agricultural product after cotton. Trade turnover of coffee on the international market reaches 10 billion USD annually.

Vietnam is the second-largest coffee exporter in the world. In particular, the country leads the world regarding the quality of its Robusta coffee.

Source: VNA