Coffee industry seeks to blend capsules

With the protectionism of the Government still barring the release of a small amount of coffee imported into the blend (blend) with the national production of capsules, the Brazilian coffee industry seeks alternatives in their own country to make viable the product factories.
The companies work in the replacement of imported coffees for domestic varieties in blends, parallel to the work with the Ministry of Agriculture to the end of the trade barrier.
Meanwhile, coffee growers question the sanity and sustainability of competing countries to defend the veto the import of cafes and evaluate the release, even a small amount, can open unprecedented in the industry.
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Main producer of capsules, Nestlé works with the Government to try to import at least the coffee of Ethiopia, responsible for just 4.8% of the volume used in blends of its brands of single doses. The company would have alternatives, in Brazil, to replace Kenya's coffee, which accounts for 0.3% of the mix and even the Colombian, with 28%. The Brazilian coffee accounts for 65% of the volume used in capsules.
The expectation is that an Ordinance of the Ministry of agriculture releasing the Ethiopian coffee is published before December, when the company must inaugurate the factory of capsules, in Montes Claros (MG). The R$ were invested 180 million venture and there is still the expectation that total supply scope R$ 800 million in future phases. At the beginning of the year, after publishing in the Official Gazette the import release of Peru's coffee, the Ministry of agriculture went back and suspended the authorization.
Biggest coffee sector industry in the country, the 3Corações, the company's joint venture with the Strauss Coffee, Israeli bet on a fully national capsule to be produced at the plant built by the company also in Montes Claros and expected to be inaugurated at the beginning of 2017. "The 3Corações has much to work with the Brazilian blend. First we will try what we have at home, as our production is entirely focused on the local market, "said Lauro Araujo, technology expert and General Coordinator of the project 3Corações capsule.
Barrier
On the other hand, Rogério Salume, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Wine, owner of the Mocoffe, aims to transform Brazil into "global platform" in the production of capsules and defends the import. "We want to make a blend but we must not forget that at the other end has the consumer. We got to break the barrier of the coffee imported will end with our production, "he said.
Even those who still evaluate the production of capsules, as the businessman Sydney Marques de Paiva, a Board member of Café Bom Dia, criticize the impasse to the release of import of cafes for blends in the country. "The national industry is in extreme disadvantage, since multinationals bring imported coffees in the pods and add value here. This is much more political than thinking in the industry, because 100 000 or 200 thousand sacks imported would not get in the way, "said Paiva.
While the companies working to produce capsules using coffee from other countries, with imports of the commodity has already processed and in these doses increased almost 60%-released between January and September 2015. The billing out of $ 34.44 million for R$ 54.57 million in the period, according to data from the Ministry of development, industry and trade (MDIC). "That worries because the movement started a year of national companies manufacture the capsules in new factories got a little discouraged, because the import occurs regularly in growing amounts and tax exemption, said the Executive Director of the Brazilian Coffee Industry Association (Abic), Nathan Herszkowicz.
Trade in this business moves around from 500 million units per year in the country, a high value-added product that could generate more revenue here. While a pound of green coffee is R$ 7.40, the product in capsule costs 240 R$, or more than 30 times.
"Everything is wrong", criticized Rita de Cássia Miracles Talib, General Coordinator of Agribusiness, the Brazilian Ministry of development, industry and foreign trade (MDIC), and one of the advocates within the Government for the release of coffee imports to the blend in capsules. "Rather than worry about the possibility of exporting coffee with great added value, we have to live with the skyrocketing imports of capsules, which generate revenue out there," he said, during the national meeting of coffee Industries (Encafé). The event, held in A (BA), did not have the presence of representatives of the Ministry of agriculture.
The leading exporting entity of the sector, the Council of Brazil's coffee Exporters (CeCafé) supports the import of the commodity. "The Brazilian chain is competitive and is prepared even if it comes a considerable volume" secured Luciana Florêncio, Executive Director of the CeCafé.
Brazilian standard capsules
The agronomist and consultant Andrew Serum defended this Friday, 13, during the Encafé, a collective agreement between the companies to create a national standard for these machines and single doses of coffee. He recalled that there are more than 54 capsules industries in the world, with different standards, and assessed that a national standard would give opportunity for hundreds of small and medium-sized processors serve coffee companies in the industry. "These companies require specific policies to compete and survive," said Soro, the research coordinator on repositioning the coffee industry commissioned by the MINISTRY.
Serum assessed that the green coffee will lose more and more space for the value-added product, from the roasted and grinded to capsules. "Increasingly we produce coffee and fewer export ground roasted", exemplified the consultant. He cited as example the fact that Brazil be only the fourth largest exporter of coffee roasted and grinded for Argentina, with no import tariffs. The Italy exports a volume ten times the size of coffee that the Brazil to Argentina.