Rain this week will ease the dryness of coffee farms in Parana and Sao Paulo states, private forecasters Somar predicted Monday, adding that south Minas will also see more rain. Parana is expected to get 34 millimeters (1.3 inches) and Sao Paulo 50 mm (2.0 inches) of rain this week bringing welcome moisture after dry weather since early February.
South Minas, which had some 40 mm of rain over the weekend, is expected to get nearly 60 mm over the next five days.
But the forested coffee areas of Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo will be relatively dry.
Between March 26 and 30, rains will ease in Parana and Sao Paulo states as wet weather moves into the forested coffee zones of Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo.
The forested coffee farms of Minas Gerais have been wet this month with 180 mm (7.1 inches) of rain, or 28 percent more than the March average. Alegre, an arabica area in south Espirito Santo, has had 209 millimeters (8.2 inches) of rain, or 86 percent more than the March average.
Rain and sunshine are needed to help the growth of coffee fruit, but won't increase the size of the crop which was determined by flowering between September and November.
Robusta harvesting starts in April and arabicas in June.
The government has forecast a 17 percent fall in production, essentially arabicas, to between 30.7 million and 33 million 60-kg bags in 2005 due to the downturn in the biennial crop cycle and lack of fertiliser usage.
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