SAO PAULO: Brazil’s 2023/24 coffee harvest has reached 45% of the total area by June 27, a report by agribusiness consultancy Safras & Mercado showed on Friday, up 6 percentage points from the previous week but still below the average for the period.

As a comparison, the consultancy said that farmers had harvested 39% of the total coffee area by this time last year, while the five-year average for the period stands at 48%.

Safras & Mercado consultant Gil Barabach noted in a statement that dryer weather in most of Brazil’s coffee areas favoured work in the fields in the last week. Brazil had above-average rains in April, which delayed the maturing of coffee crops, but the weather in May and June has been mostly favourable for harvesting, as well as for drying the harvested coffee.

Safras estimated that about 62% of robusta coffee fields have been harvested (54% last year, 67% five-year average), while the arabica coffee harvest is seen reaching 35% (31% last year, 40% five-year average). Considering the consultancy’s forecast of a total output of 66.65 million 60 kg-bags this season, some 29.75 million bags have been harvested so far, it added.