Does Indonesia Produce Coffee? Sumatra Island - Indonesian Coffee Growing Region

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Indonesian Coffee Regions

Sumatra Island is Indonesia's second-largest island, separated from the Malay Peninsula by the Strait of Malacca to the north. It extends from northwest to southeast, with the equator passing through its central region. The terrain is higher in the northwest, where the Barisan Mountains run through the area, primarily growing Arabica varieties and serving as the main production region for Mandheling coffee. The southeastern area is lower, mostly flat or swampy land, and primarily cultivates Robusta varieties. The entire island has over 90 volcanoes and numerous volcanic lakes, providing fertile soil for coffee cultivation.

The famous coffee-growing regions in Sumatra include the GAYO mountain area (also known as the Aceh region), Lintong (Lintong region), and Sidikalang.

Currently, the highest quality beans from the entire Sumatra region come from the GAYO mountain area, mostly grown from old tree varieties. The Gayo Mountains are located in the Aceh region of northern Sumatra, at elevations between 1,500-2,500 meters. Coffee farmers are mostly local indigenous people—the GAYO people. This region has ideal growing conditions for coffee—high altitude, fertile soil, and abundant rainfall. Lake Tawar provides rich water resources, and the area widely uses organic methods for coffee cultivation without chemical fertilizers, making it considered a world green coffee production region. Therefore, Gayo coffee is often called green coffee or Gayo organic coffee.

The Lintong region, located near the famous tourist area LAKE TOBA in Sumatra, has coffee farmers from the local Batak people. At elevations between 1,400-1,800 meters, tree varieties include Jember, Garundang Typica, Ateng, and others. The familiar Mandheling originally originated from this traditional production area and gained worldwide fame.

Previously, due to significantly increased demand, coffee farmers changed to planting higher-yield hybrid varieties, and ancient Typica almost disappeared from this traditional region. However, the substantial decline in coffee quality led to increased Typica production again.

As for Sidikalang coffee, it is also famous locally but is mostly supplied to the domestic market with limited exports. We won't elaborate on this further here.

In Brief

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