River Barge Delays Add to Coffee Export Costs

Low water levels on the Río Esperanto, the great inland river of Tierra Verde's agricultural heartland, are slowing barge traffic for a second consecutive month. The river authority reported Thursday that draft restrictions have cut barge loads by a quarter, adding roughly a week to the journey from San Vicente to the transshipment point where coffee is loaded for the port at Nueva Singapur.

The delay is pushing up freight costs for exporters already squeezed by the federal exchange's low coffee prices. 'It is a quiet tax on everyone who grows beans,' said freight broker Marta Ibarra of the San Vicente cooperative. The river authority expects levels to recover with the autumn rains, but has not set a date.