Ten countries where coffee is grown, in order of production volume, are:
- Brazil
- Vietnam
- Colombia
- Indonesia
- Honduras
- Ethiopia
- Peru
- India
- Guatemala
- Uganda
Coffee is grown all around the world, each country producing unique flavors due to their differing climates and varieties of coffee. Read on to learn about the top 10 global producers of coffee!
Brazil
Brazil produces 2.68 million metric tons of coffee each year. It’s been the world’s topmost coffee producer for a century and a half!
Arabica and Rostuba beans are given the perfect climate to grow in Brazil. According to EnjoyJava, Arabica is the world’s most popular kind of coffee. Arabica coffee is fruitier than Robusta coffee and requires a more specific climate.
Brazil is perfect for growing coffee because of its amounts of rainfall and sunlight, its low elevation, and its consistent year-round temperatures.
Vietnam
Vietnam is the world’s second-most producer of coffee, growing over 1.5 million metric tons each year. Next to rice, it is their most exported commodity.
In the 1800s, French colonialists introduced coffee to Vietnam. In 1986, after the country’s reformation, private enterprises were allowed to grow coffee there.
This led to a huge boom in Vietnam’s coffee production.
Vietnam produces 40% of the world’s Robusta beans. Robusta has almost double the amount of caffeine than Arabica coffee and is more “robust” because it can tolerate harsher growing conditions.
Colombia
Columbia produces 7.5 hundred thousand metric tons of coffee each year. It has the perfect terrain and climate to grow coffee, and is one of the only countries to grow exclusively Arabica beans.
According to Little Coffee Place, a lot of the coffee coming from Colombia is grown on small, family-run farms that are as tiny as 12 acres. Around half a million families are hard at work producing Arabica coffee beans in Colombia.
There are 940,000 hectares of total coffee farming area in Colombia, with the coffee being grown at elevations between 4,000 and 6,000 feet.
Colombian coffee is known for its fruity, mild, and aromatic flavors.
Indonesia
Indonesia is the world’s fourth-highest producer of coffee, growing about 6.7 hundred thousand metric tons of coffee each year.
Indonesia consists of thousands of islands, creating diverse growing conditions for many different types of coffee.
The cultivation of Indonesian coffee dates back to the late 17th century during the Dutch colonial period.
An island called Java was the first place where coffee was grown in the country. Java coffee is known for its earthy, woody flavors.
Indonesian coffees are incredibly famous because of how diverse they are. Javan, Sumatran and Sulawesi coffees are well-known in the coffee world and are all grown in Indonesia.
Honduras
Honduras was pretty overlooked as a coffee producer until recently, and now produces 4.75 hundred thousand metric tons of coffee a year.
In the past, it was hindered by struggling infrastructure so most of the coffee produced was sold domestically. Only 10% was exported.
But recently, their coffee has grown in global demand.
The majority of Honduran coffee is grown on small mountain farms referred to as Fincas. These farms are at high altitudes ranging from 1,400 to 1,700 meters.
These Fincas are special because they each have unique micro-climates, creating great variation from one farm to the next and producing an array of flavor profiles.
Ethiopia
Ethiopia is the first place coffee was ever grown. Coffee trees have existed in the wild in Ethiopia for centuries.
Now Ethiopia is the world’s sixth highest producer of coffee, growing 4.7 hundred thousand metric tons of coffee each year.
Over a thousand varieties of coffee are grown in Ethiopia. The southern mountainous region has high elevations that create great growing conditions.
Most coffees grown in Ethiopia don’t need agricultural chemicals because they are already grown in the right conditions.
Ethiopian coffee has bright fruity and floral flavors.
Some coffee growing regions in Ethiopia include:
- Yirgacheffe, a small town whose farms produce some of the world’s best coffees
- Guji, which is highly sought after by the world’s best roasters
- Harrar, with unique wine-like flavors
Peru
Peruvian coffee is grown in 10 distinct regions throughout the country and produces 3.4 hundred thousand metric tons of coffee yearly.
It is mostly grown at high altitudes by small co-ops who favor organic methods. Most Peruvian coffee beans are wet-processed and fermented.
Peru is the highest producer of fair trade coffee in the world and drastically increased its exportation once cooperatives started forming.
Although each region has its own flavor notes, a good rule of thumb is that Peruvian coffee is smooth, mellow, has mild acidity, and boasts a light body.
India
India grows a modest 2.3 hundred thousand metric tons of coffee each year.
Indian farmers were greatly affected by the 1870’s coffee rust- a fungus that affects coffee trees- and transitioned a lot of their coffee farms into tea plantations.
Although people think of tea when they think of India, they actually grew coffee for two centuries before tea arrived- in the 1600s and 1800s, respectively.
Although India used to be known for their Arabica coffee, their coffee production is now almost evenly split between Arabica and Robusta with Robusta making up 60% of their current coffee production.
The majority of coffee is grown in the southern states of India such as Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala. They mostly export to Europe where it is typically used in blends.
One of the most well-known coffees of India is Monsoon Malabar. It has an extremely unique growing process involving being exposed to monsoons.
This one-of-a-kind technique creates a matchless flavor profile.
Guatemala
Coffee is Guatemala’s largest exported product, coming in at 2.45 hundred thousand metric tons each year.
Coffee didn’t gain traction in Guatemala until their dye industry took a hit in the mid 19th century and they had to take an economic turn.
Guatemala has cool nights, low humidity, and the right amount of sun to grow mainly Arabica coffee.
Uganda
Uganda is the world’s 10th highest coffee producer at about 2 hundred thousand metric tons each year.
It is mainly known for its Robusta coffee grown in their luscious rainforests. Their coffee trees are considered some of the rarest naturally occurring trees in the world.
Ugandan Robusta has a higher quality than most other Robusta beans because of their unique rainforest conditions.
Hi, I’m Jen Williams, chief editor and writer for ThirstPerk.com.
I’ve been drinking coffee and tea for most of my life, but it wasn’t until I started working at Thirstperk.com that I became an expert on the subject. I’m a total caffeine addict who has spent hours upon hours reading about and experimenting with the different types of coffees out there in my search to find the perfect cup of joe.
I’ve been a tea lover for as long as I can remember as well. I grew up in a house with a mom who loved to drink herbal tea, and I think that’s where my love for tea first began. These days, I’m always on the lookout for new and interesting teas to try, and I love experimenting with different brewing methods and flavoring combinations.