El Salvador Coffee Variety characteristics Fine Coffee Bean Flavor description Taste Manor introduction

A brief history of coffee production

Coffee was introduced to El Salvador from the Caribbean in 1742 (1740).

In the mid-19th century, El Salvador's original export pillar Indigo (Indigo, a dye) gradually declined due to the development of synthetic dyes in Europe, and coffee gradually became the main export product under the leadership of the government.

In 1856, the first 693 bags of coffee beans were shipped to Europe. Europe was El Salvador's leading coffee customer until World War II, when it was replaced by the United States.

In the 1970s, El Salvador produced a record 350,000 bags of coffee. As the civil war intensified, the coffee industry was in turmoil.

Coffee production in El Salvador was affected by domestic political instability, and the civil war was suspended after the parties signed a peace agreement in 1992. The coffee industry is beginning to recover.

Coffee production status

"Natural disasters" and "bad luck" are the words that describe the challenges facing El Salvador's coffee industry. Although it has escaped the shadow of war, El Salvador's coffee production still faces challenges from time to time, including: hurricane in 1998; earthquake in 2001; volcanic eruption in 2002; and leaf rust in 2012.

Despite these challenges, El Salvador has maintained a high coffee production, consistently ranking in the top 15 of ICO member countries in terms of total coffee production between 2008 and 2012, according to ICO International Coffee Organization data. In 2013, affected by leaf rust disaster, 70% of farms in China were infected, and the yield dropped sharply by about 40%, ranking down to 16.

In the early 1990s, guerrilla warfare significantly disrupted the country's national economy, reducing coffee production from 3.5 million bags in the early 1970s to 2.5 million bags in 1990- 1991. The eastern part of the country was most affected by guerrilla warfare, and many farmers and workers were forced to leave their estates. The shortage of funds has caused coffee production to plummet, from 1200 kilograms per hectare in the past to less than 900 kilograms per hectare today.

In addition, in 1986 the Government imposed an additional 15 per cent duty on coffee exports, i.e. 15 per cent on top of the existing 30 per cent tax. Taxes, combined with unfavourable exchange rates, severely reduced coffee exports and, with them, quality.

The government finally realized the huge role of coffee in the national economy, such as employment, foreign exchange and agricultural production, so in 1990, it privatized part of the coffee export industry, hoping to increase the yield of coffee in the export market.

Today, this coffee accounts for 40% of the country's exports. The best quality coffee is exported from January to March, and 35% of the extra hard beans are exported to Germany