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Peru Coffee Origin Guide: Regions, History & Flavor Profile

With a diverse climate that is supportive of agriculture cultivation, Peru consistently ranks in the top 10 coffee producing countries globally. In 2024 it made up 2% of global coffee production at 3.88 million 60kg bags. The top producer of organic coffee in the world, there is ample infrastructure to support organic and Fair Trade certified crops. Cup profile is often sweet and clean, but not always the most complex. Specialized microlots with distinctive profiles are increasingly being produced. Internal consumption of coffee is low, and most of the production is exported out of the country.  

The Andes Mountain Range flows vertically along the Peruvian coast , providing ample land and a variety of climates in which coffee can grow, with different elevations, soil nutrients and sun exposure. 

History

History

Coffee was first brought to Peru around the 1740s, but the country wouldn’t begin exporting the crop for another hundred years or so. Most of the coffee was consumed internally during that period.  

Peru has a complicated history with coffee, like many coffee growing countries. When Peru won independence from Spain and the War of the Pacific, the government was deep in debt and the Grace Contract was created to ensure Peru was able to recoup the losses.  The government defaulted on a loan to the British government in the 1900s and paid it off by giving the Brits 5 million acres of land in the central part of the country.  A quarter of this land was turned into plantations to grow various crops including coffee. This meant a colonizing country was highly involved with growing cash crops in the region. Workers would migrate from the highlands to work on these farms and some even had the chance to buy the land from the British with they left Peru. 

Juan Velasco’s government in the 1970’s created laws that inhibited the growth of the coffee industry. The International Coffee Agreement made sure prices were set and coffee was sold. Because the baseline was set, there was no need for producers to improve upon their coffee and in turn, caused a lack of investment in education and infrastructure from the government. Once the government removed its backing for this organization the coffee industry was severely damaged.  

During this period, a violent terrorist group known as The Shining Path engaged in a “people’s war” with Peru’s government. This campaign of violence and destruction lasted for more than 12 years and is responsible for upwards of 70,000 deaths. Not only did they orchestrate bombings, assignations and massacres across cities and jungles of Peru. They created socioeconomic upheaval and greatly impacted the coffee industry by destroying croplands and displacing and killing citizens. They were very active in the late 1900s but began declining in 1992 when the founder was captured alone with his successors in 1999 and again in 2012. Now the group is a small yet deadly organization making millions via the drug trade in the country. The country has largely recovered from the violence with minimal attacks since 2000.  

PERU ORGANIC CAJAMARCA LOS SANTOS (202280) GRAINPRO VANCOUVER4

Production

Over time the Fairtrade International Organization took steps to support Peruvian farmers, and much of the land is now dedicated to Fair Trade Certified cooperatives. Organic certification is also common in Peru due to the inherent belief systems and dedication to the environment that is woven into the culture. This makes the country the top exporter of organic coffee. 

Although Fair Trade and organic certifications are great for getting higher market prices, they do not imply a higher cup quality. This, combined with the fact that the smallholder infrastructure makes it difficult to streamline processing methods from wet to dry mill, can often yield coffees of lower quality.  

For this reason, it is especially impressive when organizations and co-ops gather members of the community to create consistent and delicious coffee. Sometimes these co-ops can have up to hundreds, or even thousands, of contributing producers. 

peru coffee growing regions

Regions & Cultivars 

The main coffee growing regions of Peru are scattered about the Andes mountains, which allows for high altitude farming, and therefore better coffee.  

Cajamarca is in the northern part of the country, and the northern end of the Andes. High altitude and ideal soil conditions allow for excellent coffee. Most of the producers from this region are smallholder farmers. They are well organized and supported by different groups that work to educate, finance and provide infrastructure support to these growers.  

Cusco is another region on the southern point of the country and most of the coffee grown is by smallholder farmers. Elevation can reach up to 1900m and many tourists travel through on their way to Machu Picchu.  

San Martin is east of Cajamarca and over the years has emphasized the importance of crop diversification, not only growing coffee, but also cultivating cocoa and farming honey. Many of the plots are roughly 5-10 hectares and previously the region mainly grew cocoa.   

Cultivars that are grown in Peru include Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, Pache, Mundo Nuvo and, Catimor. 

Mundo Novo is a typica Bourbon hybrid with a great degree or productivity and cup quality but susceptible to diseases. This cultivar was found in 1943 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Researchers worked to stabilize the cultivar and completed this project and distributed it 9 years later. It is widely used in South America but not often seen in Central American countries. Some sources say the cultivar has commercial importance in Peru but rarely is it offered to Royal from producers with coop traceability.  

Consumption of coffee in Peru is low per capita, but in recent years there has been an uptick in consumption, with instant coffee being the most consumed.