More than 1,700 producers of improved robusta coffee formally began the second harvest of this item in West Panama, during an event held at the facilities of the Unión Capireña Campesina, in the community of Ciricito, in Ciri Grande de Capira.
During the activity, organized by the Ministry of Agricultural Development (MIDA), in Region 5, Panama West, some 300 producers representing various unions such as the Union of Capira Coffee Growers (UCC), Monseñor Cresta Durán, Association of Coffee Growers of the Sub-basins of the Cirí Grande and Trinidad Rivers of the Panama Canal (ACACPA), Associated Producers of Panama West (CAPOA), Grupo San José Association, Community Base Association, Grupo Robusta Panama SA and 20 de Abril.
On behalf of Minister Augusto Valderrama, the General Secretary, Erya Villarreal, participated, who indicated that for MIDA the strengthening of the coffee sector in Panama is very important, which is why the National Coffee and Cocoa Program was recently created by Law.
Villarreal congratulated the group of producers for the effort they make to improve the quality of the item and urged them to continue working as a team to strengthen and continue carrying out these harvests each year with better results in yields.
The director of MIDA in West Panama, Raquildo Domínguez, said that this activity is a tribute to the coffee producers who start the harvest at the end of November and end in February. He highlighted that with this the effort of these coffee growers in the area is valued, who over time have gone through a lot of work to get the product out and that through government actions and the support of the Panama Canal Authority ( ACP) great progress has been made.
He explained that in the area there are some 2,000 hectares of lowland coffee distributed among 1,700 producers who strengthen the hydrographic basin of the Cirí Grande and Trinidad rivers to strengthen the volume of water from the Panama Canal and which, at the same time, is an injection for the producers. that carry a high-altitude coffee with the so-called “canalero coffee”.
This program, promoted through MIDA and the Panama Canal Authority (ACP), with the support of the Cooperation Project between Korea and Latin America for Food and Agriculture (KoLFACI), is giving positive results in the area with the production of low-lying coffee that is improving the quality of life of the area’s producers and that at the same time allows the conservation of the most important water sources of this District.
José Ángel Vargas, representative of CAPOA, said that they are advancing to improve the quality of the coffee through the training and support that is given to them and that they currently have some two thousand hectares of coffee, and thanks to the support of MIDA with the assistance technique that is offered to them, it has been possible to improve the product and increase the sale with a quality coffee obtaining good prices, they can now process a good coffee.
The Minister Counselor for the Agricultural Sector, Carlos Salcedo, also participated in the activity, who explained the benefits for the entire agricultural sector of the State Agri-Food Policy Law, with which it is expected to leave this important sector shielded for more than 20 years; Eng. María Eugenia Ayala from the ACP spoke about the Café incentive program; the vice governor of West Panama, Judith Flores, the National Director of Agriculture, Reinaldo Solís and on behalf of OIRSA, Ariel Espino, among others. In this day where different private companies participated with exhibitions and donations for the producers, there was a demonstration of coffee roasting, harvesting, pulping the grain, tasting of the different coffees that are processed in the region and environmental certification was delivered to the UCC, in addition to acknowledgments to the different associations
