Specialty Coffee Roaster J. Martinez & Company Explains the Kona Coffee Shortage

    NORCROSS, GA, August 15, 2012 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Estate coffee supplier J. Martinez & Company Fine Coffees wishes to explain to the public the reasons why smaller roasters are currently experiencing a shortage in Kona coffee supply.

Kona coffee is in short supply everywhere because the coffee berry borer, a very small beetle native to Africa, has been destroying the coffee in the Kona region of Hawaii since September 2010. The coffee borer can wreak havoc on a coffee crop by boring into coffee cherries to lay its eggs. When the eggs hatch, the borer beetle larvae eat the coffee bean, mature inside, and then mate before the females fly to new cherries to lay more eggs. Considering that the beetle's lifespan is very short, several generations can be created quickly and destroy an entire coffee crop.

The coffee berry borer is a common pest in most coffee growing areas, but its presence had not been known in Hawaii before 2010. By this point, as much as 90% of the plants in some Kona plantations have been damaged by the borer beetle. It is believed that over half of the total population of coffee trees in the Kona region has an infestation at this time. This has created an overall shortage in available Kona coffee availability. The Hawaiian government is trying to control the infestation, but it will take a while for the coffee crop to recover.

Making the shortage worse for smaller roasters like J. Martinez & Company are large companies who are grabbing up whatever Kona berries they can. Because these companies are unable to produce the same quality of small batch roasted coffee, the overall quality of available Kona has also suffered from the shortage.

Coffee lovers do have alternatives, however, from areas of the world where the coffee berry borer population is under control. J. Martinez & Company Fine Coffees recommends that Kona fans test out Jamaican blue mountain coffee, which is world famous for its mild flavor and lack of bitterness.

To learn more about blue mountain coffee and the other gourmet coffees J. Martinez & Company offers, please visit http://www.martinezfinecoffees.com. If you would like to know when J. Martinez & Company has Kona coffee back in stock, subscribe to their online newsletter at http://www.martinezfinecoffees.com/newsletters.html.

About J. Martinez & Company

Established in 1988, J. Martinez & Company is an Atlanta based purveyor of fine coffees and other gourmet items. J. Martinez & Company originated the concept of single estate coffees over twenty years ago, and still carries only the finest premium coffee beans from estates around the world, including Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee and Kona coffee from Hawaii.

For more information, please visit http://www.martinezfinecoffees.com.

For all media inquiries, please contact:

Anne DeVito
Project Coordinator
Cardinal Web Solutions
http://www.CardinalWebSolutions.com

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