A List of Top Coffee-Producing Countries in Central America
Because Central America is such a hub of good coffee growing, much of the world’s coffee production starts there (casting aside, for the moment, the dominance of Brazil and Vietnam). Here are the countries of Central America that cracked the world’s top 20 coffee exporters in 2010:
- Guatemala: in Guatemala, coffee is an export on par with sugar, vegetables, and even bananas. It is the top coffee-exporting country in Central America (even beating out the much-larger Mexico, the terrain of which is not entirely used for growing coffee).
- Mexico: Though not all of Mexico is used for coffee cultivation – and which country can say that? – it is still a top-ten producer of coffee worldwide thanks to its coffee-friendly soil in the southern portions of the country.
- Honduras: Climate-wise, Honduras is actually part of the Western Caribbean Zone, which is good news for this small country because it means that much of its climate and geology is well-suited to the growing of coffee.
- Costa Rica: Perhaps not the top exporter of coffee in Central America, but still a prevalent coffee exporter with a number of regions that are highly regarded by seekers of single origin coffees.
- El Salvador: This tiny Pacific coastal nation has been based on a coffee-growing economy since the 19th century, which means there’s a rich history of good coffee to look back on.
- Nicaragua: Coffee is a top export in Nicaragua, as it is for many of the small economies of Central America, with coffee dominating the high slopes of Nicaragua and “everything else” taking place on lower ocean-bordering land.
Of course, with Panama not on this list, it’s important to remember that the amount of coffee exported from a single source does not necessarily correlate to the quality of coffee produced there.
