Coffee in Cameroon: With 0.32 % world market share #21 on the list of coffee producers.
- A country with 3 climate zones – from the dry north to the tropical climate in the interior of the country to the southern equatorial climate.
- No wonder the varied landscape with flat plateaus, volcanic mountains and tropical rainforest provides ideal conditions for coffee plants.
- In 1913 a German officer brought coffee farming to Cameroon.
- Later, Blue Mountain coffee plants were imported from Jamaica and cultivated.
- Today 86 % Robusta and 14 % Arabica are cultivated. This, however, shifts from year to year more on the cultivation of Arabica coffee.
- The best coffee in Cameroon grows in the northwest, in the regions Bamileke and Bamoun at heights of 1,200 bis 2,200 m.
- Here Arabica coffee is cultivated in the forest. The taste is characterized by its mildness and sweetness and is comparable to South American varieties.
- The cultivated Robusta has an average quality with nutty full-bodied taste, which is ideal for blends.
- According to data from the Cameroon coffee and cocoa office CICC, only 5 % of the coffee in Cameroon is processed locally. This, in turn, brings significant price increases for farmers.
- So the CICC wants to further increase the added value of the beans.
- In the meantime, the EU is funding a 3,600 hectare coffee cultivation area by 2020 with € 30 million.
- Also many other investments are to bring the Cameroonian coffee production back to the old splendor. Here is a good article.
- In terms of sustainability there are still 2 fairtrade producers in the country – and there will be more.
- And, of course, the coffee in Cameroon is also celebrated every year – at the Festicoffee in May.
Coffee Cameroon: Preparation
Most coffee is prepared as a pour-over, to which drinkers can then add milk or sugar if they so wish.