From the Newsroom*
São Paulo – From 2003 to 2006, Brazil produced 143.6 million bags of coffee, according to data provided by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply. From that total, 103.1 million were exported, generating a US$ 9.4 billion revenue in the period. Domestic consumption stood at 60.6 million bags.
According to a government official, the budget of the Coffee Economy Defense Fund (Funcafé) was R$ 4.155 billion (US$ 1.9 billion) between 2003 and 2006, of which R$ 16.4 million (US$ 7.6) went into advertising and R$ 33.3 million (US$ 15.5 million) went into research. The funds of Funcafé invested in research included the genome sequencing work developed by Embrapa.
"The sequencing will allow for Embrapa to detect, for example, the strengths of different varieties of coffee regarding their resistance to drought, to plagues and diseases, their flavour, aroma, and productivity," explained Costa Lima. The information was supplied by the Ministry of Agriculture.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
