In Panama, particularly in the provinces of Panamá Oeste, Veraguas, Coclé, and Los Santos, as well as in the Capira district, the cultivation of Robusta coffee is an integral part of the family economy and a source of employment.
Through this exchange of Robusta coffee clones, the goal is to identify which varieties adapt most easily to the cultivation zones of different countries and to introduce their cultivation in nations like Costa Rica, where only Arabica plantations exist. Associations of Robusta coffee producers in Panama will exchange clones of this variety with their counterparts in Central America as part of an agreement to improve the quality of this grain and seek new sales markets.
Villarreal noted that in Costa Rica, the planting of Robusta coffee has been authorized since 2018, after being banned since 1988. The exchange of Robusta coffee clones will be carried out through PROMECAFE. The objective of these trials is to encourage producers to organize into cooperatives, enabling them to produce higher-quality coffees and open export markets.
The trials with Robusta varieties entering Panama must be validated by the Institute of Agricultural Innovation of Panama (IDIAP).
This agreement, explained José Villarreal, acting General Director of the Institute of Agricultural Innovation (IDIAP), was achieved during the fourth annual meeting of the Cooperative Regional Program for the Technological Development and Modernization of Coffee Growing (PROMECAFE). The trials will be conducted in different environments within the country and generally take five to seven years, the official indicated.
