The Conquest of Coffee

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The Conquest of Coffee
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A boy and his goats

• Legend has it that coffee was originally
  discovered by a shepherd boy in Ethiopia. He
  discovered his goats frolicking around and eating
  some mysterious bushes. He tried the berries on
  the bushes, and soon was frolicking with them.
• At first leaves and berries just chewed
• Brewed tea, ground berries and mixed them with
  animal fat
• 16th century, dried, roasted and brewed

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All about coffee

• Coffee is the most valuable crop after oil
• Worlds most widely taken psychoactive drug
• Has been used as aphrodisiac, nerve tonic, life
  extender, other health benefits, Arab-Sufi monks
  used it for midnight prayers
• Comes from qahwa? Arab word for wine
• 80 bil. spent globally on coffee in all forms
• 2 mil. C. cup drunk daily in the world

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A little history

• Discovered in what is now Ethiopia
• 15th century spread by Muslim pilgrims throughout
  Muslim world
• Muslim pilgrim smuggled seeds out and cultivated
  them in India
• Dutch transplanted a tree in Holland
• From there, Sumatra, Celebes, Timor, Bali, East
  Indies
• 17th century, coffee in Japan? Dutch merchant
• Early 18th century introduced to Latin America

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A little more history

• Coffee industry got going in U.S after civil war,
  when first industrial roaster was created
• 1689?first American coffeehouse
• Industrial revolution made transportation,
  communication and marketing easier with new
  resources
• Coffee fueled prohibition, When theres such a
  drink as this, Liquor never need we miss. All
  its virtues we repeat Coffee! Coffee! Thats
  the treat!
• 1950s coffee is the beverage of choice for
  America
• Coffee consumption faded with Baby Boomers,
  favored soft-drinks

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The coffee tree

• Bush/tree with Berries
• Takes 4-5 years to develop
• Produces 5lbs berries (1 lb beans)
• Produces several times/yr
• Self-pollinating allows for mono-crop, no need
  for bees
• Arabica-3000-6000 ft. temps around 70F, never
  above 80F, never freezing, lots of rain-more
  flavorful than lower grown beans
• More sought after
• Robusta-unknown until end of 19th century
• Lesser quality
• Climate or region determines coffee prosperity
• Brazils frosts
• Flower delicacy- can ruin entire crop

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The Process
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The Bean
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Substitutes, decaf

• Some additives include chicory, almonds,
  asparagus seeds and stems, baked horse liver,
  coal ashes, carrot, cocoa hulls, cranberries,
  dirt, dog biscuits, lentils, lupine.
• Post- grain based substitute
• Decaf- four varieties in Madagascar- too bitter
• Decaffeination process- extracted caffeine with
  high powered steam and solvent benzol
• Followed by a brand which claimed no chemical
  usage

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And instant

• During WWI- refined by German George Washington
  brewed coffee crystals? used by army? cuppa
  George
• Maxwell House and Nestlé
• 1952- 17 of U.S coffee was instant

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Caffeine

• Produced by plants as natural insecticide
• Liver treats caffeine as poison? tries to
  dismantle it? some molecules reach brain
• Caffeine molecules block natural chemical-
  adenosine- from brain, which usually slows things
  down, lets us sleep regularly, when blocked, we
  stay alert artificially
• Also adenosine receptors in other parts of body?
  heart, beats faster, constricts some blood
  vessels, causes certain muscle to contract more
  easily
• Diuretic? sm. amounts of protein end up in urine?
  possible bone loss? dangerous for elderly women
  with low calcium intake

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Possible health risks

• German doctors claimed it caused still births
  and sterility
• English doctors claimed it aided digestion,
  headaches, coughs, consumption, dropsy, gout,
  scurvy and prevented miscarriages
• In Reality- not even proven to stunt growth
• Mild addiction

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All about coffee

• Wherever it has been introduced it has spelled
  revolution. It has been the worlds most radical
  drink in that its function is always to make
  people think. And when they begin to think, they
  become dangerous to tyrants
• Coffee and coffeehouses have been banned
  throughout history because of the threat they
  pose to governments and religions
• French revolution born in the coffeehouse

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Coffee and politics

• Coffee quickly became a profitable crop
• Latin American countries increased their
  dependence on it as they produced more and more
• Were importing necessary crops
• Vulnerable to Boom and Bust
• Land Reforms in Guatemala
• Repression of indigenous people

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War and Depression

• Both of the World Wars affected coffee producing
  countries
• Europe closed to trade
• Unable to switch crops- coffee is long-term
• Great Depression-
• 26 mil. Bags of coffee in warehouses in Brazil- 1
  mil. more than was consumed globally previous
  year
• Government meant to burn surplus- some
  alternatives- bricks, flour, oil, caffeine,
  perfume
• Traded U.S coffee for flour (only imported 1/8
  flour needed)- this put an embargo on flour
  exports to Brazil
• No work, no land to work- farmers were desperate
• No work no money no schools, food, health care
• Revolts and massacres in hard times

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The workers

• Coffee started in slavery
• Imported Europeans to Latin America
• Today, average field worker in Latin America
  makes 3/day
• In U.S we spend 3 on a cup of coffee
• Farmers reduced to laborers by corporations (many
  foreign owned by countries such as U.S)

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The environment

• Sun vs. Shade
• Sun method- depletes soil
• Requires slash and burn
• Erosion on hill sides
• Temporary
• Helps with pest control
• Shade- habitat for migratory birds
• Maintains soil, no erosion
• Protects ecosystem

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More environment

• Harvesting, wet vs. dry
• Dry(Brazil)- all berries, buds and leaves
  stripped onto tarps, dried- if not spread thinly,
  ferment inside skins? all berries are together,
  can sit too long
• Wet (Central America)-Invented in W. indies? RIPE
  beans are hand picked, popped by machine,
  fermented in water for 48 hours where mucilage
  loosens and is then removed by sending beans down
  water filled troughs, then sun or artificially
  dried and hand sorted? waste can be used as
  fertilizer, or if sent down stream, causes
  pollution

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Fair Trade-Removes middle men-assures farmer a
stable and just price
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Whats in your cup

• Fair Trade promotes organic and sustainable
  agriculture
• Promotes cooperatives
• Promotes fair living conditions
• Promotes community

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San Lucas Tolimán

• 115 families from the village of Chitulul175
  families from San Lucas Tolimán9 families from
  San Juan La Laguna11 families from Pampojilá2
  families from the village of San Martín 1 family
  from the village of Panimaquip2 families from
  the village of San Gabriel