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African countries are now emerging as the top exporters of high-quality coffee beans as top coffee producers from South America are already facing obstacles because of climate change causing a fall in coffee production in South America.
It is estimated that over 2 billion cups of coffee are consumed every day around the world making coffee a big industry. According to rough estimates, over 140 million bags of coffee beans are traded internationally. Coffee trade is worth over USD 16 billion globally – making coffee one of the most traded commodities in the world after crude oil.
In many developed nations, coffee is no longer a luxury drink but a daily necessity. As a result, demand for coffee has been growing steadily with the passing of each year. According to recent reports, annual coffee consumption is expected to cross 200 million bags by 2030. Against this backdrop, African coffee has a bright future as it produces some of the best coffee beans in the world. Coffee and tea exports have been the top revenue earners for many African countries.
Currently, the global coffee trade has been dominated by South American and Southeast Asian countries like Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, and Indonesia. However, African countries are now emerging as the top exporters of high-quality coffee beans as top coffee producers from South America are already facing obstacles because of climate change causing a fall in coffee production in South America.
On the other hand, Africa produces some of the finest quality beans, the demand for which has been growing exponentially in recent years. Africa’s leading coffee producers like Ethiopia, Uganda, Cote D’Ivoire, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Madagascar – to name a few – are already recognized globally as the leading suppliers of high-quality coffee beans. According to recent reports, Ethiopia and Uganda dominate East Africa’s coffee supply chain, accounting for 62% of sub-Saharan Africa’s coffee output.
Dedicated organizations like the African Fine Coffees Association (AFCA) predict a bright future for Africa’s coffee industry. In one of their recent reports, they noted that African farmers are fine-tuning their production methods by planting more coffee trees and boosting their exports by exploring new markets to boost their income. As a result, Africa’s coffee production is expected to double in the next five years, thereby making it one of the leading coffee exporters in the world.
Demand for coffee in Brazil, North America, and Europe has been growing each year. Europe has emerged as one of the largest consumers of coffee with over 45 million bags bought in 2021. Demand for coffee in Canada and Brazil has been growing too, with consumption of more than 6 kilograms of coffee per person every year. Indonesia, Vietnam, and India are also consuming more coffee than ever before. China too has emerged as a big importer of coffee from Africa. All this points to a bright future for exporters of coffee in Africa.
Due to rising demand for coffee from all across the world, there has been a shortage of coffee because production levels have not grown simultaneously.
African coffee producers can easily meet the shortage of coffee in the world by growing more coffee. African coffee growers have an excellent opportunity to boost their sales by supplying more coffee by simply producing more coffee. As it is, sub-Saharan Africa has the perfect climatic conditions and soil for coffee farming.
Ethiopia has dominated coffee production in Africa and can allot an additional 5.4 million hectares of farmland available for coffee cultivation. On the other hand, Uganda coffee farmers recorded a 36 percent growth in production and a 15 percent growth in exports in 2021. This fivefold increase in their share of the international coffee market is a direct result of them penetrating new markets across the world.
Although Africa has been exporting coffee for many decades, most of it has been raw coffee beans and not processed, ready-to-consume coffee. As a result, most African nations only earn a small percentage of the global coffee earnings because multinational processors and big retailers in Europe and America take the largest share of coffee profits.
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Africa accounts for about 12% of the world’s production and coffee consumers around the world prefer premium-quality coffee from Africa. Specialty coffee, with unique flavors and tastes, is a much-prized commodity globally and can be a top revenue earner for Africa in the coming years.
