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The Rich History of Yunnan Coffee

Yunnan has a long history of coffee cultivation. In 1892, French missionary Alfred Dédelé came to Zhukula Village in Binchuan, Dali, for missionary activities and planted the first coffee bean here. The planted coffee seeds gave birth to coffee life in Yunnan, China for the first time. This seed became the sprout of Yunnan coffee history, pioneering coffee cultivation in Yunnan. It has been a century since then. Today in Zhukula Village, there are still 13 mu of ancient coffee trees, including 24 trees over 100 years old. Through numerous national and provincial coffee culture seminars, Zhukula coffee has been called the "living fossil" of Chinese coffee and the oldest coffee forest in China.

Four Stages of Yunnan Coffee Industry Development

The development of Yunnan's coffee industry has roughly experienced four stages:

First Stage (1952-1978): Strategic Cultivation for Soviet Union

Baoshan - "The earliest industrialized coffee planting area in Yunnan Province."

In the mid-19th century, although coffee was planted in suitable areas such as Binchuan in Dali, Nujiang Valley, and Dehong, the cultivation at this time had no scale to speak of, mainly planted to meet the needs of missionaries.

In the spring of 1952, scientific personnel from the Mangshi Branch of the Yunnan Agricultural Experimental Station (now the Tropical and Subtropical Economic Crop Research Institute of the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences) brought back more than 70 kilograms of fresh fruit from Nongxianzhai to Lujiangba in Baoshan City for trial planting. They found good adaptability, abundant fruiting, and excellent quality, which led to continuous development and growth. During the Sino-Soviet friendship era, Baoshan's coffee ushered in a major development opportunity. Starting from the national economic strategic goal of exclusively supplying coffee to the Soviet Union and Eastern European socialist brother countries, Xincheng and Nujiang farms in Lujiang became the main forces in coffee industry development. Coffee cultivation was also大规模普及 in streets, Pupiao, and Luoming. Thus, Baoshan became the earliest area for industrialized coffee cultivation in Yunnan Province.

Second Stage (1978-1988): Exploration and Fluctuation

After the "Cultural Revolution" ended, coffee trees could only be seen along the Burma Road or in farmers' courtyards throughout Yunnan. The remote Zhukula Village, due to geographical reasons, had coffee seedlings planted by missionaries sleeping quietly, waiting for someone to awaken them. In 1988, Nestlé, aiming to reduce the impact of South American coffee cultivation bases on coffee prices, shifted its focus from Brazil, the world's largest coffee-growing country, to Pu'er, which shares the same latitude as Cuba, the hometown of coffee. Nestlé's first agronomist, Baud, planted the first coffee tree in Meizijian River in Ning'er County and Xiaohaijiang Hongxingba in Dehua. It wasn't until 1990 that coffee in Ning'er County reached the standards set by Nestlé headquarters. Some say that Nestlé experts extracted excellent genes from the old seedlings in Zhukula Village's Bourbon and Typica varieties to achieve success.

Third Stage (1988-2008): Stable Development

After Nestlé entered Pu'er in 1988, Yunnan coffee entered a stage of stable development. This stage lasted for 20 years.

The stimulation from multinational corporations finally revived Yunnan coffee cultivation. By the end of 1997, Yunnan's coffee cultivation area had reached 7,800 hectares, with production accounting for 83% of the country's total. As China's urban middle class gradually emerged, coffee became a new lifestyle for urban white-collar workers. More multinational corporations, including Maxwell House and Starbucks, also came to Yunnan.

Fourth Stage (2008-Present): Comprehensive Industry Chain Development

This stage transitioned from relying solely on agricultural primary processing and export for the first 30 years to a stage that not only includes agricultural exports but also incorporates industry and branding, continuously building and improving the industry chain.

This stage is full of opportunities and challenges. It's a stage where coffee cultivation faces transformation from traditional agriculture to modern agriculture, and a stage of expanding international trade while tapping into domestic potential markets.

With the continuous maturation of the domestic coffee market and coffee industry chain, Yunnan's coffee cultivation area and production have continuously increased. Currently, Yunnan coffee cultivation has spread across 9 prefectures and cities including Pu'er, Baoshan, Dehong, Lincang, Wenshan, and Xishuangbanna, covering 35 counties and districts. As of early 2016, China's coffee cultivation area exceeded 1.8 million mu, with a total output of 140,000 tons, accounting for 1.5% of global production. Yunnan's coffee cultivation area was 1.77 million mu, with a total output of 139,000 tons, accounting for over 99% nationwide. Local Yunnan coffee companies like Hougu and Lingfeng welcomed their spring. After 2018, China's coffee consumption will inevitably enter an explosive era.

Yunnan Coffee Brand Recommendations

FrontStreet Coffee's roasted Typica Yunnan coffee beans - [Yunnan Huaguoshan Coffee] - provide full assurance in both brand and quality. More importantly, they offer extremely high cost-performance. A half-pound (227g) package costs only about 60 yuan. Calculating at 15g of coffee powder per cup, one package can make 15 cups of coffee, with each cup costing only about 4 yuan. Compared to coffee shops selling cups for dozens of yuan, this is truly a conscientious recommendation.

FrontStreet Coffee: A roastery in Guangzhou with a small storefront but diverse bean varieties, where you can find various famous and lesser-known beans, while also providing online shop services. https://shop104210103.taobao.com

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473