Coffee Goes Worldwide: Coffee in the Americas
Considering that coffee’s emergence in Europe also coincided with the expansion of Europe into the New World – that is, the newly-discovered North and South Americas – it’s no surprise that coffee did not take a long time to spread to what was essentially across the globe.
In fact, it was the discovery of some of these lands (as well as new discoveries constantly being made during the Age of Exploration) that revealed to Europeans that much of the land in the Americas was well-suited for growing coffee. For example, a man named Gabriel de Clieu brought coffee seeds to Martinique in the Caribbean in the early 18th century and it turned out that the climate, altitude, and soil were ideal for growing coffee. This lead to coffee seeds being spread throughout the Caribbean, including Hispaniola, Mexico, and throughout the Caribbean islands.
As the influence of coffee grown in the Americas became more and more significant, coffee became a product that helped contribute to the existence of companies like the British and Dutch East India Companies. Though the spice trade still often dominated the demand for international waterways, coffee was a dependable product that helped spur further exploration and cultivation of the Americas.
The cultivation of coffee throughout the Americas continued over the centuries, especially as certain countries like Brazil earned their independence and had a greater reliance on homegrown resources to spur economic growth. Though coffee was first introduced to Brazil in 1727, for example, the cultivation did not begin in full force until Brazil gained its independence in the early 19th century.
