Let's talk about plants now.
Types of plants and their influence on the market
Belonging to the Rubiaceae family we can find more than 120 species of coffee plants.
Of which are marketed: the Arabica species and the Robustas species . Equating almost the entire world coffee market, these two are the best known to the general public.
There are two others of which research continues for their commercialization. The third cultivated species is called Liberica , this represents approximately 2% of world production.
Finally, the Excelsa species has also been recognized for commercialization , with similar characteristics to the previous one, but with smaller grains and lower quality.
Liberica
The Liberica coffee plant species was discovered in the center of the African continent, in the Guinean and Congolese lands. Unlike Arabica and Robusta plants, this plant did not have, due to its productive characteristics, great export and cultivation until the end of the 19th century, in Asian countries where the Rust disease (produced by a fungus) decimated the crops of less mature plants. resistant like the Arabica species.
With superior resistance qualities to droughts, low temperatures or diseases than other spices, it solved the problem faced by many farmers and producing countries, which returned to the cultivation of Arabica coffee, which is more valued, once this pest was controlled.
Liberica spice plants can reach up to 20 meters in height, their fruits are larger than those of their sisters, but they have uncertain and changing productivity.
Today we can find Liberica crops in South Asian countries such as Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines. In fact, the cultivation of this species is really crucial in the Malaysian economy since it accounts for more than 90% of its coffee production.
Robust
The robust coffee species or canephora was first cataloged around 1800 in the Congo , although this is also considered a native tree around Lake Victoria.
Its cultivation characteristics, resistant to inclement weather, cultivable at low altitude and its high productivity meant that this coffee plant suffered the same expansion as its Arabica sister.
Although this one , of lower quality and inferior aromatic properties, was not highly valued until the middle of the 20th century, when the leaf disease attacked the Arabica plantations of Southeast Asia, which were replaced by Robusta.
Currently, the robusta species accounts for approximately 40% of global coffee production.
This species is cultivated in geographical areas located between the tropics where the temperature is constant and varies between 20° and 26°. It grows between 0-900mA although its high degree of adaptability allows cultivation at higher altitudes.
Robusta coffee contains twice the amount of caffeine than the Arabica species , this gives it more bitter and acidic connotations . These characteristics work in its favor since it also makes it more resistant to being eaten or affected by fungi and insects.
The main producing countries of this species are Brazil, Vietnam, Indonesia and India.
Arabic
Finally, the Arabica coffee species, the largest consumed and most cultivated in the world for its flavor and aromatic characteristics, accounts for around 70% of the market.
The seeds of these plants were first collected and consumed in the mountains of what we now know as Ethiopia.
Like its sisters, this species also grows in the tropics, although, unlike the other two, the Arabica species is less resistant to inclement weather and diseases (such as Rust). In addition, its cultivation requires a minimum altitude of 800 m , which makes it even more difficult to cultivate. With climate change we are seeing crops of this type appear at higher and higher altitudes, reaching an average altitude of 2200mA.
Today the world of specialty coffee is closely linked to this plant, to the extraction of its aromas and flavors.