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Following is an excerpt from a special report on coffee from the Agricultural Office in China: The full report can be found at http://www.fas.usda.gov/scriptsw/attacherep/default.asp .

China's production of coffee in 2001 is estimated at approximately 13,000 tons (217,000 bags). China's production has been steadily increasing over the last several years. China in 1997 harvested 3,573 tons (60,000 bags) of coffee and by 2000 the harvested amount had grown to 11,568 tons (193,000 bags). Along with production, acreage has grown too. Both existing and harvested coffee acreage has continuously risen from 1997 to 2000. China's existing coffee acreage in 1997 was 7,400 hectares, but rose to 23,709 hectares by 2000. As for harvested coffee acreage, it equaled 3,700 hectares in 1997 and jumped to 9,600 hectares by 2000. These figures probably will continue to increase in the near future, because new coffee acreage has been developed during each of the last few years. Most of the development of new acreage has been in Yunnan province in the southwestern part of China.

The main drink of choice in China still is tea, but coffee consumption is growing. Amounts to date are still small in comparison to tea consumption, and instant coffee is the dominant product. The International Coffee Organization (ICO) reports that Nescafé and Maxwell House instant coffees occupy at least 70 percent of the market and that these brands are well known among China's urban households.

Most of the instant coffee sold in China is produced domestically and nearly all of this production occurs in Guangdong province. Nestlé who produces the Nescafé brand of instant coffee produces all of its instant coffee for China in a plant located in Dongguan county of Guangdong province. Kraft, the producer of the Maxwell House brand, produces its instant coffee for the China market in a factory located in Guangzhou. While the Nescafé and Maxwell House brands hold the greatest shares of China's instant coffee market, Nestlé is the dominant of the two brands. Another brand of instant coffee available at least in southern China is Colcoffee, which is manufactured in Colombia and distributed in China by Tsit Wing (TW) International Limited of Singapore. TW also has an instant coffee joint venture in Zhuhai, a major Chinese city located next to Macau, and markets the joint venture's product under the TW brand name. Other brands of instant coffee, including imported ones, occasionally can be found at local retailers, but amount and variety tend to be limited and not always available.

Brazil

Brazil continues to offer government-owned stocks through its auction system.

United States

U.S. coffee stocks at the end of July totaled 5.3 million bags, up 147,720 bags from the June 30, 2002, level. Details follow in 60-kilogram bags:

Last modified: Wednesday, July 21, 2004