Development of coffee production in Nepal : analysis of an appropriate supply chain and institutional support for production and export of specialty coffee from Nepal

The coffee industry in Nepal is young, and it is only since 2003 that export of washed Arabica coffee has commenced. The industry seems to be rather fragmented with several exporting companies competing to collect the relatively small output of the coffee production system. Two Norwegian investors are looking to promote coffee production for export from three hilly districts in eastern Nepal. There seems to be some recognition that coffee from Nepal can satisfy the quality criteria for specialty coffee. To make quality coffee from Nepal available to a larger market, there is a need to promote coffee growing in much larger areas and increase the processing capacity of quality coffee. This master thesis is about supply chains for coffee, the institutional framework necessary to support the growth and competitiveness of the coffee industry, and the plans to establish specialty coffee production for export from three districts in eastern Nepal. This has been formulated as a research question which forms the basis for the report: What is the appropriate design of a supply chain and an institutional support system for production and export of green bean specialty coffee from three districts in eastern Nepal?