Coffee is one of the most important commodities in the world’s economy. It was the second most valuable traded commodity after oil, with a traded value of $5.6 billion in 2000/2001. The total world coffee consumption is estimated to be over 6 million tonnes per annum, with Europe being the largest market, followed by the U.S., and Japan in third position. Producing countries consumed 28 million 60-kg bags in the 2003/2004-crop year, which is approximately 27% of world output as estimated by the International Coffee Organization (ICO). Recent projections for the 2005/2006 global production are in the region of 110 million bags.