How Many Coffee Growing Regions Exist in China and What are the Yunnan Coffee Varieties - The Origins of Coffee

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Yunnan Coffee

As China's largest coffee producing region today, Yunnan has attracted significant attention from major coffee companies such as Starbucks and Nestlé, who have recognized its immense potential. Coffee enthusiasts have likely heard of Yunnan coffee to some extent. This time, we'll explore the varieties, history, growing regions, and stories behind Yunnan coffee.

Yunnan Coffee Varieties

The coffee varieties in Yunnan are primarily cultivated with two classic, high-quality coffee varieties: Typica and Bourbon. In 1991, the Catimor series was also introduced from Kenya (with stronger virus resistance and higher yields), belonging to the Arabica species (also known as small-grain varieties). Due to the similar morphology and habits of these two varieties, they are often cultivated together.

The scientific name for small-grain coffee plants is Arabica, which is a category of coffee with over 100 varieties. Among them, Typica and Bourbon are recognized worldwide as the best varieties within the Arabica species. What the people of Baoshan usually refer to as "old varieties" are actually Typica and Bourbon.

The History of Yunnan Coffee

Phase 1

In the 1880s, the Qing government was forced to sign treaties with France, ending the Sino-French War and opening Mengzi (Mengzi County, Honghe Prefecture) as a treaty port. In 1889, the Mengzi Customs opened, marking the beginning of exchanges between this southwestern border region and the outside world. Foreign merchants flocked in, and foreign companies followed one after another.

Phase 2

In 1902, a French missionary with the Chinese name Tian Deneng brought coffee from Vietnam to a mountain village called Zhukula in Binchuan County, Dali, Yunnan Province for cultivation. To this day, descendants of those original coffee plants still survive, with ancient coffee groves telling stories of a century of history amidst morning dew and evening sunsets.

Phase 3

In 1952, experts from the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences distributed 80kg of coffee seeds to farmers in the Lujiangba area of Baoshan. Several years later, they provided large-scale guidance for cultivation, leading to the graceful, swaying coffee trees along the Yunnan-Myanmar Road. Due to the huge demand for supply to the Soviet Union, Yunnan's coffee cultivation experienced rapid development.

Phase 4

In 1988, Nestlé established a joint venture in China and began supporting the development of the local coffee industry in Yunnan through initiatives such as launching coffee cultivation projects. Yunnan coffee once again rose to prominence.

Starting from 1992, Nestlé established a Coffee Agriculture Department specifically to guide and research the improvement and cultivation of Yunnan coffee, and purchased coffee at prices based on the US spot market. To date, not only have coffee giants like Nestlé, Maxwell House, Kraft, and Starbucks been engaged in coffee business in Yunnan, but local coffee enterprises have also gradually developed and grown.

Knowledge Point

The western and southern regions of Yunnan Province are situated between 15°N latitude and the Tropic of Cancer. Most areas have an elevation between 1000-2000 meters, with predominantly mountainous and sloped terrain that features significant variations in elevation. The soil is fertile, with abundant sunshine, plentiful rainfall, and significant temperature differences between day and night.

In Brief

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