Lateinamerika
Latin America is where the giant among the coffee producing countries,
Brazil, is situated. Here, the first Arabica cuttings from the Island of
Martinique were planted in 1727. In 1876, a wide-growing sub-species of the
Arabica, the Maragogypes, with particularly large beans was discovered in the
Northern Brazilian town of Maragogijpe. Later, this species also found its way
to Central America and Africa.
In the highlands of Guatemala, Costa Rica
and Colombia, you can find the most famous and desired Arabica qualities.
Guatemala and Mexico are among the few Central American countries, which are
producing high quality, washed Robusta coffees. In Costa Rica, law, however,
prohibits the cultivation of Robusta.
Small countries of origin, such as
Paraguay, Venezuela, Surinam and Bolivia sometimes offer exceptional qualities
on the world market; however, they are somewhat unreliable with respect to
ensuring a constant quality.
A bright future in speciality coffee shops
is expected for Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, which have taken a vital
step to achieving higher coffee prices on the world market by being able to
offer higher quality coffee thanks to cultivating new as well as old
varieties.