Coffee Leaf RustCoffee Leaf Rust (Hemileia vastatrix) was officially confirmed by USDA to be on Maui in October 2020 and has tentatively been found on Hawai’i Island.

Coffee Leaf Rust is one of the most devastating pests of coffee plants and is established in all major coffee growing areas if the world, but had not previously been found in Hawai’i until now.

“The Kona Coffee Farmers Association is focused on assisting farmers in learning how to manage this new threat to our livelihood. By coordinating with local, state, national and international groups, KCFA seeks to provide accurate information to our membership, so that farmers can take this as foundation and use it to learn with neighbors about best steps to take. That way we can all work together to deal with this pest, which moves fast and which no one has managed before in Hawaii. As a group and as a team of fellow coffee farmers, KCFA members can work together on best management strategies to continue forth successfully.” –Colehour Bondera, KCFA President

Important Contacts:

Email KCFA about Coffee Leaf Rust: info@konacoffeefarmers.org

HDOA’s Plant Pest Control Branch – (808) 973-9525

Andrea Kawabata, Associate Extension Agent for Coffee and Orchard Crops
Text: (415) 604-1511  Email: andreak@hawaii.edu

Newest Additions

Organic CLR Management and Control

Aloha Kona coffee supporters: The past year has meant that five of us farmers in Kona have worked towards managing and controlling coffee leaf rust through local organic methods, supported by funding from Organic Farming Research Foundation.  We have made a video about our getting going on what is now ongoing research (working through CTAHR and…

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CLR Found in Holualoa-Zoom Tomorrow

ZOOM Meeting on Coffee Leaf Rust(CLR) Reminder-Tomorrow! Thursday from 4-5 pm (complete Zoom Meeting information at very bottom of this email)  COFFEE LEAF RUST CONFIRMED ON HAWAI`I ISLAND Posted on Nov 10, 2020 in Main HONOLULU – Coffee leaf rust (CLR) has been confirmed on coffee plants on Hawai`i Island by the U.S. Department of…

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Coffee Leaf Rust Confirmed on Hawaii

Aloha all, Here is an alert (click to open>>>) Coffee Leaf Rust Alert 11.10.20 concerning the confirmed identification of coffee leaf rust (CLR) on Hawaii Island.  In summary, a sample of a rust fungus collected by a grower on a farm in the Holualoa area, Hawai`i Island, has been confirmed by the United States Department…

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