Small-scale coffee grower Jose Natal da Silva in Porciuncula, Brazil, is losing sleep because of concerns raised by President Donald Trump’s proposed new 50% US tariff on Brazilian goods.
The tariff, which is widely believed to be a political move in support of far-right Trump ally Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently facing a coup-planned trial, could lower Brazilian coffee’s demand and prices in the country’s top export market.
Brazil exports 85 percent of its coffee globally, making up 85 percent of that country’s total. Brazil is the biggest coffee customer because the US purchases 16 percent of that. Experts warn that the tariff will hurt Brazilian coffee producers, who make up the majority of Brazil’s coffee and have less resources to deal with downturns or relocate to new markets.
Already crop losses were caused by the drought that caused the climate last year. Prices for Arabica, which have fallen by 33 percent since February, are now adding to the decline. Da Silva, who grows 40 000 trees and other crops on a daily basis, warned that “we struggle for years and suddenly we might lose everything.”
Paulo Menezes Freitas, a nearby smallholder with 35, 000 trees, fears being forced to stop growing coffee in Varre-Sai. He claims that important imports like machinery and aluminum are also impacted by the tariff. He said, “It feels like the ground is sagging beneath us.”
Brazil’s coffee exporters are cautiously optimistic despite the blow. Marcio Ferreira, president of the Council of Coffee Exporters of Brazil (Cecafe), thinks US customers can’t afford to stop importing Brazilian beans. Small farmers fervently hope for a turnaround before their livelihoods disappear, however, on the ground.
Source: Aljazeera
Leave a Reply