Mareeba's bumper coffee harvest

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

<strong>Coffee culture:</strong> A groundfrog with coffee beans at Skybury Coffee plantation, Mareeba, on the Atherton Tableland. Growers look set for a bumper coffee harvest this year.

Coffee culture: A groundfrog with coffee beans at Skybury Coffee plantation, Mareeba, on the Atherton Tableland. Growers look set for a bumper coffee harvest this year.

Coffee plantation owners at Mareeba in Tropical North Queensland expect their best ever harvest this year as growing conditions have been particularly favourable during the 2008 season.

The region’s oldest coffee estate, Skybury Coffee, is harvesting a crop which is anticipated to top 50 tonnes.

Mareeba, on the Atherton Tableland west of Cairns, is known for its fine coffee, and this year’s regional yield looks set to be the best ever.

Coffee tours are among the popular tourist attractions of the Cairns region, and coffee lovers will find a number of plantations in the Mareeba area that offer great products and tours of their facilities.

Skybury Coffee managing director Ian MacLaughlin, who is also chairman of the Australian Coffee Growers Association said the Mareeba region could turn in a 200 tonne harvest this year. Last year’s Mareeba coffee harvest was almost 100 tonnes.

“We have experienced very favourable rainfall and temperatures throughout the growing season and there are some good young trees coming into production,” he said.

The coffee harvesting period is June/July and while the biggest demand continues to be from domestic Australian buyers, approximately 25 per cent of the harvested coffee will be sold internationally to coffee distributors and wholesalers in Europe and the USA.

Besides coffee, the Cairns region offers plenty of activities for lovers of gourmet food and drink - a great way to wind down after exploring the Great Barrier Reef and rainforest.

If you enjoy wine and spirits, it is worth visiting some of the great wineries, particularly the exotic Golden Drop Winery that produces wines and spirits from mangoes.

Further south on the Atherton Tableland is the award-winning Mungali Dairy where fabulous organic dairy products are produced.

For a taste of the Cairns region’s best fresh produce, a visit to Rusty’s Markets in Grafton St, Cairns is essential.

Options abound for dining out throughout the region.

For more details on destinations and other tourist information, please check the visitors section of cairns.com.au

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