COLOMBIA TRADERS SAY NEW COFFEE STRATEGY VITAL Coffee producing countries must quickly map out a fresh common strategy following the failure of the International Coffee Organization, ICO, to reach agreement on export quotas, Gilberto Arango, president of Colombia's private coffee exporters' association, said. Arango told Reuters that the most intelligent thing now would be to seek a unifying stand from producers, including Brazil, in order to map out a strategy to defend prices. An ICO special meeting ended last night in London with exporting and consuming nations failing to agree on a resumption of export quotas, suspended one year ago after prices soared following a prolonged drought in Brazil. Arango said there would be no imminent catastrophe but predicted that over the short term prices would undoubtedly plummet. However, he said the market should also take into account evident factors such as Brazil's low stocks and the sale of the near totality of the Central American crop. Trade sources said Colombia's coffee was today quoted at 1.14 dlrs a lb in New York, its second lowest price in the past 10 years. Cardenas said these countries apparently fail to understand the true impact of such a failure for coffee producing nations as well as for industrialized countries. It is difficult to believe that while efforts are made to solve the problem of the developing world's external debt, decisions are being taken which cut earnings used for repaying those debts, he said. "In Colombia's case, we watch with consternation that, while we try to effectively combat drug trafficking, countries which support us in this fight seek to cut our jugular vein," Cardenas said.