It is estimated that more than 20,000 hectares of coffee farmland in Yunnan province was affected by low temperatures in mid-December, leading to no harvest from more than 3,300 hectares, with an economic loss that could reach 300 million yuan ($49 million), Spring City Evening Newspaper of Yunnan reported on Monday.

According to the report, the temperature in most of Yunnan dropped to 0 C during Dec 15 to 20, and the major coffee production areas in the province were greatly affected.

Climate is the most important factor in growing coffee, and the plants require tropical or subtropical environments, Xiong Xiangren, director of the Yunnan Coffee Industry Association, told the newspaper.

The association has called on related departments to help local coffee growers through the difficulties. A coffee spot trading center will begin functioning in the province from June 2014, the report said.