Bali Coffee Exports Rise To 81 Pct

Denpasar, Nov 21 (ANTARA) - Bali`s coffee exports rose to 80.93 percent, from January to September 2012, reaching USD 152,601, said Ketut Teneng, Public Relations Chief of Bali Administration I, on Wednesday. He added that commodity volume in 2012 also increased to 90.14 percent, reaching 15.25 tonnes. "During the same period in 2011, commodities managed to reach USD 84,344, with a volume of 8.02 tonnes," he said. There has been an increase in the amount of commodities, since they are able to compete with other products in the international market. Farmers maintain the quality of organic coffee by not using pesticides and other chemical substances on the crops, which endanger consumers. Ketut Teneng said that farmers only pluck ripe coffee beans, which improve the taste of coffee. Coffee farmers in the Kintamani district of Bali, use organic fertilisers for Arabica coffee crops. "As of now, Bali`s coffee has reached Japan and France. Apart from meeting the international demands, coffee plantations act as a magnet for tourists," said Ketut Teneng. In Bali, coffee plantation area covers 30,029 hectares, out of which 10,485 hectares of land have been reserved for Arabica coffee alone. The plantations produced close to 3,122 tonnes of coffee in 2011. Ketut stated that the Bali Administration has plans of increasing the area of the plantations by 1,650 hectares, with funding from cigarette tax and regional budget.