Jamaica's Coffee Makers Perk Up

Jamaica's Coffee Makers Perk Up, Fighting Off Knockoffs and a Storm

Production of the Blue Mountain bean is on the rebound after being hit by Hurricane Ivan and a rash of counterfeiters.

By Carol J. Williams, Times Staff Writer

MAVIS BANK, Jamaica — Ranking with truffles and caviar as an exquisite indulgence, Jamaica's famed Blue Mountain coffee recently suffered economic body blows from knockoff artists and Mother Nature.

Industry leaders can't do much about the weather, but they have lobbied the government to protect the reputation of Jamaica's prestigious export and to step up the pace of rebuilding roads to farmland ravaged by Hurricane Ivan in 2004.

With more of their product getting to market and illegal labeling on the wane, the farmers who grow Jamaica's famous beans say they should be able to recover lost production by the end of this decade.

More...