A group of Taiwanese coffee importers plans to purchase 720 tonnes of coffee beans from Guatemala this year, up nearly 50 percent from last year, Central America Trade Office director Violeta Hsu (徐韶慧) said on Monday.
Thirteen Taiwanese businesses are participating in the Central America Coffee Economic and Trade Inspection Group that the office organized, said Hsu, who is heading the delegation.
Established in 1997, the office focuses on trade relations and promotions between Taiwan and its Central American allies. The office is supported by a development fund, which is managed by board directors consisting of the foreign ministers of Taiwan and the other nations involved.
Photo: CNA
The firms that are represented in the group are to procure enough coffee to fill 38 shipping containers as a result of the trip, which has included visits arranged by Guatemala’s National Coffee Association, she said.
“This shows Taiwanese consumers’ love for Guatemalan coffee, and highlights the abundant business opportunities between Taiwan and Guatemala,” she said.
Coffee beans from Guatemala accounted for more than 10 percent of Taiwan’s coffee consumption, making the country Taiwan’s fourth-largest coffee importer, she said.
The group visited Guatemala’s high-altitude Huehuetenango region to observe production processes from planting to roasting, and meet with local people involved in farming, processing and exporting the commodity, the office said.
In May last year, China announced a ban on imports of macadamia nuts and coffee beans from Guatemala, a move viewed as economic pressure intended to persuade the Central American nation to cut diplomatic ties with Taipei in favor of Beijing.
Guatemala is a diplomatic ally of Taiwan.
In response, Taipei promoted imports of Guatemalan coffee to help its diplomatic ally mitigate the effects of Beijing’s actions.
Guatemalan coffee imports last year exceeded US$18 million, up 13 percent from 2023, Bank of Guatemala data showed.
Coffee is the country’s second-largest export product to Taiwan, following sugar, the data showed.
Guatemalan Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Julio Eduardo Orozco Perez thanked Taiwan for its assistance countering Chinese “economic coercion” during an official visit to Taipei in August last year.
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