How to Drink Surinamese Coffee? Does Suriname Produce Coffee? The History of Coffee Cultivation in Suriname

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Introduction to Suriname

Suriname is located in northern South America, with its name derived from local indigenous peoples. It borders French Guiana to the east, Brazil to the south, Guyana to the west, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north, featuring a tropical rainforest climate. The country covers an area of approximately 164,000 square kilometers, slightly smaller than China's Henan Province. The northern region consists of coastal lowlands with many marshes, the central area is tropical savanna, while the southern part comprises hills and low plateaus. Suriname was formerly a Dutch colony in South America, became an overseas autonomous province of the Netherlands in 1954, and gained independence in 1975. Its capital, Paramaribo, is a commercial port located at the mouth of the Suriname River.

Demographics and Economy

Suriname is a country with racial, linguistic, and religious diversity, with a population of approximately 546,000. People of Indian descent constitute 33%, Creoles 31%, Indonesians 15%, Maroons 10%, Indians 4%, Chinese 3%, whites 1%, and other ethnic groups 3%. Dutch is the official language, with Surinamese commonly spoken. 42% of the population practices Christianity, 20% Hinduism, and 13% Islam. The country covers an area of 163,821 square kilometers with a population density of 2.9 people per square kilometer. The total GDP is $3.79 billion, with a per capita GDP of $7,096. In 2004, the per capita GDP ranked 85th in the world.

Coffee History in Suriname

Alongside cotton, cocoa, and indigo, coffee and sugar became successful cash crops in Suriname. As demonstrated by the BHS project, due to plantation economics, other industries have also established themselves in Suriname. From past to present, success stories are evident: crops that have had tremendous impacts on landscapes or agricultural products that remain widespread today. However, this is not the complete story.

Suriname was the first country in South America to cultivate coffee, with Norway being the primary importer of the country's coffee products. However, today the country's production is minimal, and it is mentioned here only for historical reasons.

Early Coffee Cultivation

The first coffee seeds arrived in Suriname around 1712, and every 4-5 years, as the next generation of coffee plants reached fruit-bearing age, growers' excitement increased. Coffee is a "tree product," and the rapid expansion of Surinamese production significantly changed the colony's appearance. Until the rise of coffee plantation owners, enslaved Africans were used for sugarcane production and forest clearing. This primarily occurred on the dry sand dunes upstream in Suriname, along the Commewijne and Cottica rivers. Coffee production was established in thick clay closer to the ocean and led to conflicts in Paramaribo, as people attempted to steal each other's land to plant coffee trees.

The coffee frenzy was not surprising, as people were constantly seeking crops that could thrive after sugarcane production. The success of coffee came at a heavy price: people were enslaved on a massive scale and forced to work in Suriname's polder plantations.

Introduction of Coffee to the Region

The Dutch, who had settled in Suriname since 1667, introduced coffee trees from Java in the early 18th century. The first coffee trees were gifted by the mayor of Amsterdam to a Flemish pirate named Hansback. Specifically, these coffee trees were planted in the then-Dutch Guiana region, and a few years later, they were widely cultivated in the neighboring French Guiana region. At that time, there was a French convict named Mourgues who was promised: if he could introduce coffee trees to the French colonies, he would receive pardon and freedom to enter and leave France. Naturally, he succeeded.

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