ICO Director Calls on Colombia to Strengthen Coffee Productivity

The visit to Colombia by Vanúsia Nogueira, Executive Director of the International Coffee Organization (ICO), highlighted the challenges and opportunities the country faces in terms of competitiveness, innovation, and sustainability.

At a press conference held in Bogotá with Germán Bahamón, manager of the National Federation of Coffee Growers (FNC), the leader highlighted the need to build new dynamics within the value chain .

(Read: Coffee-producing departments are accelerating their exports thanks to the grain )

“ Producers alone cannot move all the coffee; we need to see ourselves as strategic partners of multinationals ,” Nogueira stated, noting that the future of the bean will depend on greater global cooperation. He also insisted that profitability is not sustained solely by international prices, but by structural factors such as productivity, cost reduction, and diversification.

According to the executive, technological innovation will be a decisive factor in attracting new generations of coffee growers and ensuring Colombia's competitiveness in the global market. "Technology, from drones to advanced processes, is key to ensuring global competitiveness," she emphasized.

(See also: Juan Valdez will be the new sponsor and official coffee of River Plate, in Argentina )

For its part, the National Federation of Coffee Growers announced investments in strategic departments such as Huila and Santander. The goal is to promote processing and industrialization centers that add value to production and utilize coffee byproducts, in line with international trends in sustainability and the circular economy.

Manager Germán Bahamón emphasized that the sector must make a leap toward more efficient productivity without sacrificing the renowned quality of Colombian coffee. " If we want to maintain the profitability and prosperity of coffee-growing families, we must guarantee sustained growth in productivity per hectare and cost reduction, without losing the quality that distinguishes Colombian coffee worldwide ," he said.

Both the ICO and the FNC agreed that Colombia is in a key position to lead the new era of coffee, characterized by strategic alliances, production diversification, and technological innovation as fundamental pillars to ensure the sector's sustainability.

(Read more: Good harvest: Colombian coffee production reached an all-time high in July )

DIANA K. RODRÍGUEZ T. Portfolio Journalist