The Famous Paniai Coffee from Papua

 

Paniai Coffee from Papua

Paniai Regency, Papua Province is currently actively producing local coffee. In collaboration with the Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) of West Java, the Regent of Paniai, Meki Nawipa, succeeded in developing coffee plantations and plantations. Even coffee production in the form of sachets has also been circulating in the market under the name Kopi Paniai.

Until now in the Paniai area, his party has planted 26,338 coffee trees ready for production. Meanwhile, in 2020, his party managed to plant as many as 185,677 trees.

"We have planted 26,338 coffee trees which are currently being produced and what we just calculated per 2020 is 185,677 trees and currently planting more than 100,000 trees in 2021. This means that farmers have managed to plant around 300 thousand more. There is great economic potential," said Meki Nawipa.

Regent of Paniai, Meki Nawipa

 

The Papua Provincial Government will introduce Paniai coffee as a flagship product at G20 events in Nusa Dua, Bali this June. In addition to Paniai coffee, several other Papuan products will be exhibited and sold during G20 related events from June until the commencement of the G20 Summit in November 2022. 

Paniai is a regency located in the central mountainous area in Papua and has more than 200,000 residents. Paniai coffee farmers use seeds from the Blue Mountains of Jamaica to produce a mild taste with a subtle acidity, floral aroma, and almost no bitterness in every sip of Paniai coffee. 

Grown on altitudes of 1,300-2,000 meters above sea level, Paniai coffee has a unique flavour and aroma. In 2019, Paniai Regent Meki Nawipa launched a program to plant one million coffee trees and financial assistance for coffee farmers there. Up to now, more than 300,000 trees have been planted. To boost the production, Paniai Regency also plans to build its own factory. 

Previously, Director of the Community Welfare Development Foundation, Hanok Herison Pigai assessed that native Papuan coffee commodities, including Paniai coffee, had quite promising marketing prospects. Market opportunities are increasingly open because drinking coffee has become a lifestyle for urban communities. “I want people’s coffee cultivation to continue to develop in Papua. 

Historical Background

Historically, Paniai has been a coffee center in the past which was developed by missionaries. However, as the missionaries left, the management of coffee cultivation in the Mepago customary area gradually receded. 

Market absorption of coffee yields has decreased, prices have fallen, coffee plants have no longer been relied on by residents. They prefer to grow secondary crops, such as sweet potatoes, as a basic need for daily food. 

Paniai Regency is one of the regencies in Papua province. It is located in the interior at an altitude of 1,700 meters above sea level. Currently, the Regent of Paniai Meki Nawipa is serious about re-developing his regional coffee production. 

So serious, the Regent will spend more time in the coffee plantation with farmers than in his office. With the Coffee Planting Movement, the Paniai Regent's office has moved quickly to coffee, soybean, garlic and onion plantations as well as sweet potato plantations, in 2021. 

Now the spirit of indigenous Papuans is starting to look back at the promising coffee plants. With the revival of the domestic coffee market, Papuan coffee is now in high demand. Coffee experts from Puslitkoka (Coffee and Cocoa Research Center) and coffee practitioners from SCOPI (Sustainable Coffee Platform Indonesia) have come to this area and assessed that Arabica coffee in Papua has grade A, with excellent taste.