**This article was updated on July 15, 2021**
What are the steps to export coffee from Colombia? In this article you’ll learn:
- How much coffee can you export?
- 5 key steps to export coffee
- What does it mean to be ready to export coffee?
Did you know that you can export coffee from Colombia? Yes, exporting coffee is no longer just for large exporting companies. Individuals and small companies can export coffee from Colombia.
This regulation started back in April 2016, when Colombia started to allow any person to export Colombian coffee in small quantities through international transport or postal companies (see below to find out which ones).
In this article we cover: how you can export coffee, how much coffee you can export, and how to prepare to export.
How much coffee can you export?
‘Small quantities’ is relative depending on what you consider small. However, the permission given to small exporters means 60 kilos of green coffee or 50.4 kilos of roasted coffee with a maximum total value of US$5,000.
The response to this news was a sudden 74% growth of new registered exporters in Colombia.
How to export coffee from Colombia
If you’re interested in sending coffee from Colombia to the world, the first step is to register as an exporter.
How do you do that? The FNC (National Federation of Coffee Growers in Colombia) explains the registration process here.
The first step is to register – without cost – in the National Registry of Coffee Exporters (Registro Nacional de Exportadores de Cafe), which is managed by the FNC.
You need to fill out the application form and send it in with the necessary documents, which are outlined on the website. Then you’ll need to register the export and pay the coffee tax.
That brief explanation might have left you with more questions than answers. Don’t worry – we’ll help you out.
We created a free guide, 5 Key Steps to Export Coffee from Colombia, to guide you through the process.
Download our free guide, 5 Key Steps to Export Coffee from Colombia. The free PDF download explains the steps in plain English, with details, links, and tips that you won’t find elsewhere.
What are the 5 Key Steps to Export Coffee from Colombia?
Step #1 Register as an exporter
Step #2 Set up your export with the FNC
Step #3 Determine how you’ll ship your coffee
Step #4 You can’t export coffee if you don’t follow this regulation
Step #5 How to successfully export coffee
Our free guide walks you through each step, with links to key websites, an explanation of the documents you’ll need, a list of shipping companies, and essentials regulations you need to be aware of.
What does it mean to be ready to export coffee?
However, after reading the free guide (you can download it here), you may be asking yourself…are you REALLY ready to start exporting coffee?
There are many vital aspects of a successful coffee business.
- Have you thought about what kind of coffee you’d like to export? Green or roasted – this one decision will define how your export business will function.
- Do you want to sell coffee from a particular group based on gender, race or area? Coffees with a message can sell much better.
- How can you source coffee ethically? That means not using your power as a buyer wisely. In today’s market, consumers want to know where the money is going.
Additionally, have you considered…
- How will you know if the green coffee a cooperative or grower offers you is good?
- How can you cup, or taste, coffee and define the quality?
- How can you detect defects in coffee – defects that will lower the price of coffee drastically?
My online coffee course, Slurp Fast! Coffee Course, will teach you the fundamentals of coffee in record time (and at a fraction of the cost of other coffee courses). In fact, we are currently offering a 15% discount off the course if you use the links in this article.
Is the Slurp Fast! Coffee Course right for you? Check out the curriculum – and feel free to ask us any questions about coffee or our courses.
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