Aggregate Net Profit Of 876 Cos Dips To 4.95 Per Cent

India's coffee crop over the 1999-2000 season will be up 55,000 tonne to 2,85,000 tonne, prompting it to try and obtain international lines of credit which would help promote domestic consumption.

The Indian Coffee Board, which prepared a Rs 30-crore domestic market promotion plan to popularise coffee drinking, hopes to secure partial funding from the Amsterdam-based Common Fund of Commodities.

The plan, which is about to be cleared by the central government, is to be implemented over a five-year period.

According to S V Ranganath, chairman of the board, "it will be a good start even if we get half of what we proposed."

 

The board, which until 1996 was conducting auctions, is now concerned exclusively with market promotion, research, farm extension and labour welfare.

About 65 per cent of the country's coffee is exported but growers need to get good prices for the coffee sold at home. Trade officials say the domestic market is becoming increasingly important as the world outlook for coffee remains bearish and India is to achieve production of 3,25,000 tonne by 2002, against a target of 3,00,000 tonne.

The world supply of coffee in 1999-2000 is forecast at 128 million bags of 60 kg each, including opening stocks of 26 million bags.

Consumption is, however, estimated at 100 million bags.

The board feels that Indian coffee, despite its distinctive character, is discounted by more than 20 cents a pound in the world market.

As well as the domestic push, it has set up a committee which will draft an export promotion strategy and create a logo to relaunch Indian coffee abroad.

Ranganath described India as a "departmental store for coffee", where a large number of varieties are available.

These range from washed and unwashed arabica and robusta to specialities like monsooned coffee, double-washed coffee and Mysore nugget extra.

The Indian beans are particularly good for making espresso.

The area under coffee is about 3,25,000 hectare, with the share of arabica accounting for 52 per cent.

"Indian coffe