Colombia Earthquake Causes Widespread Coffee Export Disruptions
Nashnova编辑部
A powerful earthquake has severed road access to Colombia's main export port of Buenaventura, effectively shutting down the country's coffee shipments; with over 33,000 bags exported daily, every day of disruption widens the global arabica supply gap.
Why did exports stop so suddenly?
Multiple road blockages near tunnels along the Cali–Buenaventura highway have cut off access to the country's primary coffee port.
The port terminal operator has suspended or restricted coffee intake while assessing damage.
Gustavo Gomez, head of Colombia's coffee exporters' association Asoexport, confirmed: "Coffee exports have stopped. There is no official word on when roads will fully reopen."
Can shipments reroute through northern ports?
Cartagena and Santa Marta on the Caribbean coast report no major disruptions and could, in theory, handle cargo.
In practice, a severe truck shortage makes large-scale rerouting unworkable.
This means → the backup exists on paper, but a trucking bottleneck blocks it — no near-term relief.
Why is the timing especially damaging?
The quake hit during peak harvest in southern provinces — Cauca, Nariño, Valle del Cauca, and Huila — whose beans normally ship through Buenaventura.
Transport firms and processing plants are concentrated near the quake zone; power outages, communications failures, and workers' personal losses are disrupting operations.
In plain terms = the region producing the most coffee is the same region hit hardest — harvest and logistics broke at the same time.
What does each day of shutdown cost?
Colombia exports roughly 1 million 60-kg bags per month, or more than 33,000 bags a day.
Gomez warned that even after roads reopen, a surge of backlogged coffee could jam the port, delaying shipments further.
This means → the disruption does not end the moment traffic resumes — a queuing effect will keep pressing on the supply chain.
How has the global coffee market reacted?
New York arabica futures swung sharply after the quake, pulling back from multi-week highs before recovering in volatile trading.
Colombia is the world's second-largest premium arabica producer, with 2025 output of 13.4 million bags.
This reflects a market weighing two unknowns: supply is clearly cut off for now, but how long the halt lasts — and whether other origins can fill the gap — remains uncertain.
Content is for reference only, not financial advice.