Growing Coffee Beans

Growing coffee beans takes place in over 70 countries, ranging from Brazil to Indonesia. It is amazing to think that the exacting conditions required to produce high quality coffee beans can be found in so many places, and even with proper conditions, how small the harvest is.

Even though we call them beans, the portion that we roast and grind to make coffee is really a seed.

The coffee tree (Coffea spp.) can grow to twenty feet or higher. Some varieties easily reach 45 feet (15m). The seeds are produced inside a fruit. Most frequently, the seeds are produced in pairs, though the peaberry produces single seeds. This berry looks like a cranberry, and has a sweet pulp that is covered by a thin membrane that they call a silverskin.

The majority of the world's coffee is grown in a narrow band around the equator stretching from 25 degrees north to 25 degrees south. The climate boasts of average temperatures between 60ºF (15ºC) and 70ºF (21ºC), and they receive six inches of rain or more per month.

Well-draining loam is needed for good growth, and high humidity (mist and clouds at higher elevations) is a must for great coffee beans. Trees at higher elevations take longer to mature.

Robusta varieties (Coffea canephora) is used for the majority of commercial coffees because it is more disease resistant and can grow at lower altitudes. For gourmet coffee, however, Coffea arabica is the high-altitude-loving species that is used.

Moderate winds and indirect light are preferred. Many coffee species prefer being shaded. In comparison, if you're growing grapes for wine, they prefer as much hot direct sun as they can get.

After planting, a coffee tree will mature in approximately five years before the first crop can be harvested. Even then, one tree will only produce enough beans to make about two pounds (1kg) of coffee.

It takes approximately 2,000 beans to produce two pounds of finished coffee. These beans are hand-picked by skilled workers. Each picker develops their skill and can choose good beans over bad right from the tree. And you wondered why coffee is so expensive.

Coffee trees can be distinguished by their broad, dark green leaves. They produce a bloom that closely resembles jasmine. In Brazil and Mexico, the trees will blossom over a 6 - 8 week timespan. In Columbia or Kenya, however, a tree can sport mature berries right alongside those still ripening. This is part of what makes it important to have skilled pickers.

From blossom to harvest may take up to nine months, depending on factors like weather. This cycle will be perpetuated throughout the life of the tree, which can be about 20-25 years. Using the best agricultural technology, a good harvest will produce 6,600 pounds (3,000 kg) and 8,800 pounds (4,000 kg) per hectare. A single hectare equals about 2.47 acres.

The coffee berries are carried down from these high altitudes and processed into one of the world's largest commodities. Growing coffee beans does take knowledge and work.

Coffee Bean Producers Around The World

From its humble beginnings in Ethiopia, which is still an area of high production from wild forests of coffee trees, coffee has spread around the world. Growing coffee beans, however, is still restricted to tropical and sub-tropical areas due to the plants' needs of lots of sun and rain.

That narrow ring around the equator produces the world's entire supply of a fluid described in a Turkish proverb as "black as hell, strong as death, sweet as love." Coffee is second only to oil as a commodity, dollar for dollar.

Brazil is the biggest coffee producer in the world, harvesting an average of 28% percent of the world's total amount of coffee beans. Columbia, as renowned as it is for the quality of its coffee, comes in at a distant second, with only 16%. Indonesia is third in line, producing 7%, and Mexico produces the fourth largest amount, at 4%.

While coffee trees continue to produce best at high altitudes, the trees have adapted to a variety of areas.

Brazilian plantations employ hundreds of agricultural workers to tend the trees on their vast estates. The rough mountains and economic conditions of nearby Columbia require transport of the harvested beans to central processors by Jeep or mule.

Hawaiian coffee growers plant on the slopes of the Mauna Loa volcano. While rocky, the volcanic ash is ideal for the coffee trees. Clouds soften the intense sun high on the volcanic slopes, and the common island rainshowers provide the humidity needed for perfect coffee.

Dutch colonists introduced coffee to the islands of Indonesia in the 17th century. While other countries rely on technology to produce their coffee, the micro-climates of Indonesia do the work for the growers, producing incredible beans. Coffee farms are small, averaging only one to two acres in Sumatra, Sulawesi and Java, but there are enough of them to make Indonesia the third largest coffee producing nation in the world.

Mexican plantations, unlike Brazil, are mostly small farms. They make up the difference in sheer numbers, making Mexico a serious contender in the world coffee market. Most coffee farms are located near Oaxaca, Chiapas, and Veracruz. The Alturas beans are from the higher altitudes.

Lately, Vietnam has emerged to give Indonesia a run for its money. The Tonkin region is swiftly becoming a prime place for fine Arabica trees, which were first planted back in the mid-1800s by French missionaries. These small plantations also produce Robusta beans now.

The Ivory Coast, Kenya, and other small areas of Africa produce smaller amounts of coffee, but have garnered a reputation for fine large, dark beans. The foothills of Mount Kenya produces some of the largest beans in the world, which have a rather fruity flavor. The Ivory Coast, however, has cornered a niche as one of the largest producers of Robusta, which is used in espresso.

No matter where your coffee comes from, you are almost always guaranteed to find something to suit your tastes.