The first coffee plants were probably brought to Mexico around 1785, most likely from Cuba or what is now the Dominican Republic. There are reports of plantations in the region of Veracruz in 1790. However, due to the wealth earned from Mexico’s rich mineral deposits, for many years there was little drive behind energizing and creating a coffee industry.
Only after the Mexican revolution ended in 1920 did coffee growing spread to small farms. In 1914 there had been a redistribution of land back to indigenous people and to labourers and many of those trapped working on coffee plantations were freed and were able to return to their communities, taking their coffee-growing skills with them. This redistribution of land broke up many of the larger haciendas, and this was the beginning of smallholder production in Mexico.
In 1973 the government formed the Mexican Coffee Institute (Instituto Mexicano del Café) referred to as INMECAFE. They were tasked with providing technical assistance and financial credit to producers, and work within the International Coffee Agreement to meet and stay within the agreed production quotas. This investment in the industry lead to a rapid expansion in both production and the amount of land dedicated to coffee. In some rural areas, production increased by almost nine hundred per cent.
However, the 1980s saw the Mexican government change its policy towards coffee, in part due to its heavy borrowing and the drop in the price of oil that lead to it defaulting on its loans. Support of the industry slowly began to decline and, in 1989, INMECAFE collapsed completely and the government sold off its state-owned coffee processing facilities. The effect on the industry was devastating. Credit had dried up, and many farmers struggled to find places to sell their coffee. This lead to an increase in predatory coffee brokers, known as coyotes, who would buy coffee from farmers very cheaply to resell at a profit.
The loss of INMECAFE, combined with the coffee price crisis caused by the breakdown of the 1989 International Coffee Agreement, had a strong effect on the quality of coffee being produced, too. With less income, huge numbers of producers ceased using fertilizers, stopped investing in pest protection and spent less time and resources on weeding and farm management. In some cases farmers simply stopped harvesting their coffee.
Interestingly, some producers (particularly in the states of Oaxaca, Chiapas and Veracruz) responded by forming collectives to take over many of the responsibilities previously held by INMECAFE, including the collective purchasing and running of coffee mills, technical assistance, political lobbying and even assistance in developing direct relationships with buyers.
Coffee producers in Mexico seem to have embraced coffee certifications; Fair Trade and organic in particular are quite common. Mexico sells a great deal of its coffee to the United States, so it is relatively rare to find excellent examples of Mexican coffee elsewhere in the world.
had dried up, and many farmers struggled to find places to sell their coffee. This lead to an increase in predatory coffee brokers, known as coyotes, who would buy coffee from farmers very cheaply to resell at a profit.
The loss of INMECAFE, combined with the coffee price crisis caused by the breakdown of the 1989 International Coffee Agreement, had a strong effect on the quality of coffee being produced, too. With less income, huge numbers of producers ceased using fertilizers, stopped investing in pest protection and spent less time and resources on weeding and farm management. In some cases farmers simply stopped harvesting their coffee.
Interestingly, some producers (particularly in the states of Oaxaca, Chiapas and Veracruz) responded by forming collectives to take over many of the responsibilities previously held by INMECAFE, including the collective purchasing and running of coffee mills, technical assistance, political lobbying and even assistance in developing direct relationships with buyers.
Coffee producers in Mexico seem to have embraced coffee certifications; Fair Trade and organic in particular are quite common. Mexico sells a great deal of its coffee to the United States, so it is relatively rare to find excellent examples of Mexican coffee elsewhere in the world.
Since the late 1980s, many Mexican coffee producers have successfully formed collectives to purchase and run coffee plantations. Fair Trade and organic exports are increasingly common.
TRACEABILITY
Most coffee in Mexico is produced by smallholders, rather than large estates. Traceability should be possible down to a producer group, cooperative or occasionally down to a farm.
TASTE PROFILE
Mexico produces quite a range of coffees across its regions, from lighter-bodied, delicate coffees through to sweeter coffees with caramel, toffee or chocolate flavours in the cup.
GROWING REGIONS
Population: 119,531,000
Number of 60kg (132lb) bags in 2016: 3,100,000
Coffee is also grown outside of the key growing regions listed below, and should not be ignored if offered by a roaster or retailer you trust. Production from these regions is very small compared to the major areas.
CHIAPAS
This region borders Guatemala. The Sierra Madre mountain range offers both the necessary altitude, as well as the beneficial volcanic soils, for good coffee production.
| Altitude: | 1,000–1,750m (3,300–5,750ft) |
| Harvest: | November–March |
| Varieties: | Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, Maragogype |
OAXACA
Most farmers in this region own less than 2 hectares (4.4 acres) of land and there are several large cooperatives operating here. There are also a few larger estates, although some are starting to diversify into tourism.
| Altitude: | 900–1,700m (3,000–5,600ft) |
| Harvest: | December–March |
| Varieties: | Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, Maragogype |
VERACRUZ
This is a large state in the east of the country along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. This area contains some of the lowest coffee production in Mexico, but also some very high-altitude plantations around Coatepec, that produce better coffee.
| Altitude: | 800–1,700m (2,600–5,600ft) |
| Harvest: | December–March |
| Varieties: | Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, Maragogype |
A farmer turns over the coffee beans he has spread out to dry on his porch on a small cooperative near Tapachula, Mexico.