Nicaragua has passed a resolution expanding the area where robusta coffee can be grown, allowing it to be planted in several Pacific and Caribbean states where only the arabica crop was previously authorized, industry officials said on Monday. Nicaragua's Coffee Exporters' Association said the Ministry of Agriculture on Friday took a decision to expand the cultivation area to include eight Pacific states and nearly all regions of the country's Caribbean coastline.
In the areas where it was previously not allowed, cultivation of robusta would be limited to regions 400 meters (1,312 feet) or less above sea level and at least 30 kilometers (19 miles) from arabica crops, the association said. The Ministry of Agriculture did not reply to requests for comment.
The move comes as the Central American country seeks to increase coffee production and meet demand for robusta, a bitter and caffeinated variety more resistant to pests and diseases. Jose Angel Buitrago, president of the Coffee Exporters' Association, said in an interview that both varieties could be planted near one another without affecting quality or supply.
"The two types of coffee have their markets insured," he said. However, some local producers oppose the resolution, arguing that greater cultivation of robusta, which is typically less expensive and used for instant coffees and other blends, would damage the country's image as a producer of high-quality coffee. Arabica coffee, the country's main export, is currently grown on an estimated 126,000 hectares (311,352 acres) of land in Nicaragua, according to official data.
During the 2015/16 harvest, which ended in September, the country increased arabica exports by 8.3 percent to 1.91 million 60-kg bags. Of the 2,100 hectares (5,189 acres) in a limited area of the Caribbean which were already approved for growing robusta coffee, some 916 hectares are currently being utilized.
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