Rabobank’s Brazil coffee crop survey shows that both Arabica and Robusta came in above expectations. The estimates were as high as 38 million bags of Arabica, and 19.5 million bags of Robusta. Furthermore, Rabobank also noted a “surprising” lack of diseases or pests in most of their coffee areas. These indications predict that 2020/21 could be a record-breaking year.
Rabobank said, “The amount of innovation taking place in Brazil is quite surprising. Drones are increasingly used commercially to monitor farms and also to spray different products. No farmer will do any of the main spraying rounds with drones, but they are excellent for experimenting with different products.”
“Another key technological development is the potential future adoption of selective, fast-vibrating manual harvesters, which can revolutionise the way young Arabica trees and Robusta trees are harvested. At only BRL2,500 per machine, we can expect many trials to take place in large farms. It is, of course, early days for this particular technology, but low prices will incentivise these types of innovations, which are destined to reduce costs.”
