Introduction to Veracruz, a Mexican coffee producing region in North America

North America is the world's third largest continent, the central part of the continent is the Great Plains, while the north-south mountains are distributed on the east and west sides, many plateaus and mountains, and have many active volcanoes, many rivers and waterfalls.

In addition, North America spans tropical, temperate and cold zones with complex and diverse climates. due to the appropriate geographical environment and climate, coffee is grown in many countries, such as El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, Mexico and so on. Among them, Mexico is the tenth largest coffee producer in the world, and in recent years, there are many excellent coffee beans.

According to most historians, coffee was brought to Mexico through Cuba by the Spaniard juan antonio garcia in the late 17th century. However, traditional drinks such as chocolate and Aotle (corn-based exciting drinks) were more popular in Mexico at that time, and the development of mineral resources was found to be more profitable than growing coffee, so coffee cultivation in Mexico did not develop very well at that time.

Coffee exports did not grow until the 1970s, when coffee producers in Veracruz, Oaxaca and Chiapas began to sell coffee beans in large quantities. Later in the 20th century, the Mexican Coffee Association (INMECAFE) was established to provide technical and financial support to coffee growers and receive government investment, and the coffee industry expanded in terms of production and acreage.

But in the 20th century, the Mexican Coffee Association announced its dissolution and the government sold state-run coffee processing plants, leaving many farmers unable to find a place to sell coffee. After that, production and quality began to decline, and this decline continued into the 1990s and early 21st century, and did not change until 2006, when the emergence of coffee cooperatives and the provision of organic coffee enabled the industry to recover.

The development of the coffee industry in Mexico is due to the geographical and climatic environment of Mexico. Mexico is located in the south of North America, which is basically surrounded by the Madre Mountains, with the Mexican plateau in the center and the flat Yucatan Peninsula in the southeast, while the coastal areas are mostly long and narrow plains. There are many volcanoes, plateaus and mountains. The plateau is mild all the year round, with an average temperature of 10-26 ℃. The northwest inland has a continental climate, the coastal and southeastern plains have a tropical climate, and the southern part has a tropical rain forest climate. Most areas have two seasons of drought and rain. These conditions are very good for coffee cultivation.

Coffee cultivation is distributed in 16 states, but more than 90% of them are distributed in the four main producing areas of southern Chiapas Chiapas, Oaxaca Oaxaca, Veracruz Veracruz and Puebla Puebla.

Veracruz Veracruz is located in south-central Mexico, near the Caribbean Sea, has ports, and is a distribution center for agricultural products on the east coast of Mexico. The state has Orisaba, Mexico's highest peak, and coffee production centers on the region's mountains, growing between 1100 and 1600 meters above sea level. due to its developed industry, it is also the most advanced state in coffee cultivation.

There are many high-quality coffee farms in the state, such as La Perla Farm. La Perla Farm is located in the Coatepec area of the state, located in the mountains with an average elevation of 1500 meters, near a canyon where warm air rises, lowering the cold air, creating a unique microclimate and foggy, which can add moisture to the soil and coffee plants.

La Perla Farm, which is managed by Ernesto P é rez Orea and his family, was bought by Ernesto, the owner's grandfather, and was only used for agricultural production in 2021. The farm covers an area of 35 hectares, of which only 10 hectares are used for growing coffee and the rest of the crop ecological reserve. However, the farm focuses not only on production, but also on coffee research in order to improve its quality, and to this end, varieties such as bourbon Bourbon, Rosa Geisha, SL28 and Pacamara are planted, and the farm won the COE washing Group title in Mexico in 2024 with a score of 90.79.