The Kona Coffee Shortage

For advise on what farms are selling kona coffee, visit here: http://www.konacoffeebuzz.com/buy-kona-coffee Due to the continued ravages of the coffee borer beetle, kona coffee is getting harder and harder to get your hands on. Several major suppliers announced that they would no longer be selling kona coffee in their stores or their websites. It's a real shame, too. This is the toughest challenge that the kona coffee industry has encountered in over 50 years. The gourmet coffee was just beginning to become renowned around the world for their complex flavors. The increased interest in fair trade coffees led to an increased demand for 'direct-trade' coffee (the only one grown in America). Larger coffee farms like Koa Coffee and Greenwell Farms have been purchasing coffee from smaller farms in order to keep up with demand. That means that many small farms are already sold out of this year's supply of coffee. While around 15% of this year's crop has been all but lost, there is hope as coffee farmers are trying new and innovative techniques to combat the borer beetle (the borer beetle is present in almost every major coffee region in the world, so there is tons of expertise out there waiting to be utilized). I sure hope that the kona coffee industry gets back on its feet, and soon. It's such a close knit and friendly group of people. They truly have the aloha spirit in them (and I think it comes out in their coffee!).