State of emergency declared for Guatemalan coffee

Following on from the breaking news story yesterday that Central America’s coffee crops were being hit by coffee rust, today its been officially announced that Guatemala has declared a state of national agricultural emergency for its coffee crops.

Guatemalan President, Otto Perez Molina, said “If we don’t take the needed measures, in 2013-2014 our production could drop by 40%”. For the Central American country this could mean a loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs over the coming years. As scary as it sounds, this coffee rust fungus, if untreated, could reshape this entire country agricultural and job market.

In an attempt to stem the spread and devastating power of coffee rust, the government have released $13.7m (£8.7m) in emergency aid to help farmers buy the copper based fungicide.

Needless to say this outbreak is likely to effect Guatemalan coffee for years to come.

You may also enjoy these related articles

Brazil reports arabica surplus in 2013 Devastating coffee rust epidemic hits Central America Nepal moving into coffee and out of povety Try Luxurious Hawaiian Kona Coffee