Brazil’s coffee exports in May down 20.3% but 2020/21 is now record season

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Total exports of coffee from Brazil reached 2.6 million 60-kg bags in May, down 20.3% compared to the same month last year, due to logistical challenges, said the Council of Brazilian Coffee Exporters (CECAFÉ) on Friday, although the cumulative total for 2020/21 points to record shipments in a single season.

According to the entity, 2.34 million bags of green coffee were exported last month, a decrease of 20.5% year-on-year.

The May volume includes 2.05 million bags of the Arabica variety, a 16.5% decrease year-on-year, and 287,627 bags of Robusta coffee, a 40.9% drop. Revenue generated by commodity shipments in May totaled US$357.6 million, down 13.2% from the same period in 2020.

Among the logistic challenges that hindered exports in May are the shortage of containers and space on ships, which had been affecting the movements in recent months, according to CECAFÉ.

The council also mentioned adjustments being made in the modernization process for issuing  origin certificates by the International Coffee Organization (OIC).

Despite the weaker performance last month, cumulative Brazilian coffee exports in 2020/21 have broken records for a single crop year, even before the season (from July to June) ends, highlighted CECAFÉ.

Between July 2020 and May this year, 42.5 million bags were shipped abroad, an increase of 14.3% compared to the same period last season and a new all-time high, surpassing the previous record of 41.4 million bags of the 2018/19 cycle.

Foreign exchange revenue from coffee shipments abroad in the 11 months of the 2020/21 crop totaled US$5.406 billion, the highest level in the past 5 years and up 12.8% year-on-year, the entity added.

“The volume of exports has been a record for the accumulated harvest, which reflects a record harvest in 2020/21 and the very high competitiveness of Brazilian coffee abroad,” said CECAFÉ’s president Nicolas Rueda in a statement.

In May, exports were not higher because of “logistic impediments, due to the high demand for food and other products in these regions caused by the pandemic,” he added.

The United States is the main and growing importing market for Brazilian coffee, having purchased 3.402 million bags so far this year, up 2.2% compared to the same period in 2020. Next comes Germany, which received 3.211 million bags in the period (+6.7%).