by Barbara Anderson

Created on: August 08, 2008   Last Updated: September 04, 2008

Did you know that of all the beverages consumed each day, coffee is one that is enjoyed by people in every country in the world? In fact, in terms of trade, coffee follows closely behind oil in dollars traded each year.

All coffee is grown in countries located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, two imaginary lines that circle our globe approximately 23 degrees north and south of the equator. In this region of the world, the climate is warm and humid, prime conditions for growing coffee plants that cannot tolerate colder weather.

In South America, Brazil is by far the largest grower of coffee today. Columbia is a close second with about 2/3rds of Brazil's production. On the African continent, Tanzania and Kenya grow some of the best tasting coffee.

Even though Americans drink more than one-third of all coffee produced today, Hawaii is the only place in the USA where coffee is grown. Besides Hawaii, other island nations known for the quality of their coffee include
Sumatra, Java, Madagascar, and Jamaica.

Although there are many different varieties of coffee plants, the two main varieties commercially grown today are Arabica and Robusta.

Arabica coffee plants, or trees, which produce a higher quality coffee, account for about 75 to 80 percent of the world's production. Arabica coffee is naturally lower in caffeine than Robusta. The plants grow at elevations of 3000 to 6000 feet and above, where frost is extremely rare, and do best in rich, volcanic mountain soil. In these higher elevations
the coffee bean grows more slowly, which in turn leads to a more aromatic and flavorful coffee. The Arabica plant usually yields only 1 - 1 pounds of coffee beans per season. Gourmet coffee companies such as Starbucks typically purchase the highest grades of Arabica beans for their blends.

Robusta coffee plants are more resistant to disease, drought and temperature and grow from sea level up to about 2000 feet. They produce about twice as many beans per season as the Arabica plant. Robusta coffee, which accounts for the remaining 20 to 25 percent of the world's production, differs from Arabica mainly in terms of taste. The coffee
produced is an inferior tasting beverage with higher caffeine content. Because of this, most Robusta beans are blended with Arabica and are used primarily for canned and instant coffees.

Did you also know that coffee is really a fruit? Three to four years after a coffee tree is planted, if growing conditions are right, sweetly smelling

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