Whether it is from Starbucks, an Aeropress, or the vending machine down the hall, the beans that make your cup of coffee are likely to have come from just a handful of countries. However, the importance of the process by which the beans have been grown, and by whom, have only recently been contemplated by the average westerner in recent years through the rise of fair trade initiatives. What follows is a comprehensive list of the top coffee producers by region.
Brazil in South America is the largest coffee producer in the world at 17,000,000 tonnes in 2008. Alongside its other major agricultural exports, such as soybeans, rice, and beef, the government has recently implemented The Land Reform Program in an aim to generate two million jobs. In recent years, the devastating encroachment of the agriculture industry on the Amazon rainforest has led to criticism on the country’s green policy. Subsequently, the government have since implemented an Environmental Crimes Law. Interestingly the country only ranks 19th in terms of average coffee consumption per person.
Vietnam is now a big producer of Robusta coffee beans producing over 15,000,000 tonnes of green coffee in 2008. Since a succession of government implemented land reform measures, Vietnam’s prolific agricultural industry (started and still upheld by rice production), has also become the largest producer of cashew nuts with Coffee as its third biggest agricultural export. Unlike rice, wet paddy fields are not needed for growing coffee beans and, at least in terms of methane production, coffee production is less harmful to the environment.
Indonesia is the third largest exporter of coffee, the largest producer of washed Arabica coffee and the fourth biggest green bean producer in the world. Unlike the aforementioned countries, the agriculture sector makes up significantly less (14 percent) of the republic’s overall economy, despite making up for almost half of the country’s employment. Aside from coffee, Indonesia’s biggest imports are rice, tea, and palm oil – which has suffered significant ecological controversy in the last few years.
Further significant coffee-producing areas include Columbia, Mexico, and Ethiopia – which has emerged in recent years as a prime location for growing. Ethiopia’s rise has caused concern amongst some commentators who have highlighted that the amount of water that is needed for coffee production might be best used elsewhere, especially in a country which is so famously short of rain.
Article Source: http://www.ArticleStreet.com/
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
What You Should Know About History Of Coffee - Learn About Useful Advantages
The history of coffee, while hard to verify to accuracy, is the tale of a sheepherder who realized the properties of coffee while tending his sheep. His sheep became really active when they ate a certain type of berry off a plant. He tried them himself, and reacted the same way. Rumour has it that a monk told him to be cautious of the devil's fruit. However, it is also rumoured that the monks used the fruit to stay awake and pray.
There is another known story which claims an Arabian was banished to the desert. He boiled and ate a plant that was unknown to him. He was able to survive in the desert on the plant. The residents of a town close by felt the survival was a religious sign. The plant was then named Mocha, after that village,community.
Few people realize the coffee plant originally grew only in Ethiopia. To eat while on raids, they wrapped it in animal fat. It was transported to Arabia, it grew, and they took control of the market. The Turks then were the first to drink it. For a sweeter taste, they added cinnamon and clove.
Through Venetian trade merchants, coffee founds its way to Europe. Rumours of the coffee taste began to surface all over. The Arab's keep an even tighter grip on the coffee plants. Christian's started saying coffee was the devil's drink, just like the monk story above. Then it. He enjoyed it very much. Talk of banishing coffee went away after that.
Soon after, coffee houses were built all over Europe. They became a popular place to hang out and drink coffee. It was in the 1700's that coffee traveled to Americas. A French infantry captain brought a small plant with him. That plant was cultivated, and within 50 years, more than 19 million of coffee trees were planted. Coffee was declared the national drink of the United States in a dispute of the extreme taxes on tea from Britain.
Now, millions of persons get pleasure from their coffee during the day. Coffee comes in a lot of brands and a lot of flavors. At most any grocery store, you can buy ground coffee or coffee beans. There are also gourmet coffees to choose from. Starbuck's Coffee, a million dollars business, is offering you the convenience of coffee any way you want it.
Author : Nathan Knightley
http://www.articleclick.com/Article/What-You-Should-Know-About-History-Of-Coffee-Learn-About-Useful-Advantages/1053109
There is another known story which claims an Arabian was banished to the desert. He boiled and ate a plant that was unknown to him. He was able to survive in the desert on the plant. The residents of a town close by felt the survival was a religious sign. The plant was then named Mocha, after that village,community.
Few people realize the coffee plant originally grew only in Ethiopia. To eat while on raids, they wrapped it in animal fat. It was transported to Arabia, it grew, and they took control of the market. The Turks then were the first to drink it. For a sweeter taste, they added cinnamon and clove.
Through Venetian trade merchants, coffee founds its way to Europe. Rumours of the coffee taste began to surface all over. The Arab's keep an even tighter grip on the coffee plants. Christian's started saying coffee was the devil's drink, just like the monk story above. Then it. He enjoyed it very much. Talk of banishing coffee went away after that.
Soon after, coffee houses were built all over Europe. They became a popular place to hang out and drink coffee. It was in the 1700's that coffee traveled to Americas. A French infantry captain brought a small plant with him. That plant was cultivated, and within 50 years, more than 19 million of coffee trees were planted. Coffee was declared the national drink of the United States in a dispute of the extreme taxes on tea from Britain.
Now, millions of persons get pleasure from their coffee during the day. Coffee comes in a lot of brands and a lot of flavors. At most any grocery store, you can buy ground coffee or coffee beans. There are also gourmet coffees to choose from. Starbuck's Coffee, a million dollars business, is offering you the convenience of coffee any way you want it.
Author : Nathan Knightley
http://www.articleclick.com/Article/What-You-Should-Know-About-History-Of-Coffee-Learn-About-Useful-Advantages/1053109
Comparison of Keurig Single Cup Home Brewers
Everyone loves the great tasting gourmet coffee from the local coffee shop, but so often we don't have the time to run out to get it. What's more, home brewed coffee used to mean making a full pot, most of which sat around until it went stale or got washed down the drain. That's why more and more people are switching to the great taste and convenience of Keurig coffee makers.
These attractive, sturdy coffee machines are designed to make cup after delicious cup of fresh brewed coffee, each in under a minute, without the mess of traditional coffee makers. So stop just thinking about the ease and convenience of a Keurig brewing system and get one for your home or office now. You'll wonder how you ever managed without it!
Author : Fielding
http://www.articleclick.com/Article/Comparison-of-Keurig-Single-Cup-Home-Brewers/1059471
Keurig brewing systems make the perfect cup of coffee every time. Simply insert the no mess K-Cup® Portion Pack into the brewer and hit the brew button. The K-Cups quickly brew one cup at a time, in under a minute. If you're a coffee enthusiast who's ready to switch to a single cup coffee maker, here's a run-down of the key features of the Keurig at-home brewers:
Brewer Name: Keurig B30 Mini Personal Brewer
Description: Personal brewer that's perfect for vacation homes, cabins, college dorms, boats, RVs, or home office desktops. Its compact size lets you enjoy your gourmet coffee anywhere!
Features: Heats and brews in less than 3 minutes. Add fresh water for each cup.
Cup Size: Brews an 8 oz. cup
Dimensions: 11" H x 7" W x 10" D
Brewer Name: Keurig B40 Elite Home Brewer
Description: Removable 48 oz. water reservoir. Removable drip tray for easy clean-up. Makes up to 6 cups before refilling 48 oz. water reservoir.
Features: Always ready and brews in under 1 minute. Auto-off feature.
Cup Size: Two brew sizes, 10 oz. and 8 oz.
Dimensions: 13.5" H x 8.5" W x 11" D
Brewer Name: Keurig B60 Special Edition Home Brewer
Description: The Keurig B-60 raises the bar for single cup brew technology. It offers the features of the B-50, plus 3 brew-sizes, blue backlit LCD display, and chrome accents. Makes up to 8 cups before refilling 48 oz. water reservoir.
Features: Always ready and brews in under 1 minute. Programmable controls for auto-on and off, adjustable temperature, and digital clock.
Cup Size: Choice of 3 cup sizes, 10 oz., 8 oz., and 6 oz.
Dimensions: 13.5" H x 8.5" W x 11" D
Brewer Name: Keurig B70 Platinum Edition Home Brewer
Description: Offers multiple brew sizes, removable 60 oz. water reservoir and drip tray, blue backlit LCD display, and chrome accents. Makes up to 10 cups before refilling 60 oz. water reservoir.
Features: Quiet Brew Technology. Always ready and brews in under 1 minute. Programmable controls for auto-on and off, adjustable temperature, digital clock, and set your favorite cup size.
Cup Size: Choice of 5 cup sizes, 12 oz., 10 oz., 8 oz. and 6 oz. Iced beverage size, 4 oz.
Dimensions: 13" H x 10" W x 13.25" D
Brewer Name: Keurig Breville Premium Brewer
Description: Blue backlit display with a stainless steel exterior. Makes up to 10 cups before refilling 64 oz. water reservoir.
Features: Always ready and brews in under 1 minute. Programmable controls for auto-on and off, adjustable temperature, digital clock, and set your favorite cup size.
Cup Size: Choice of 4 cup sizes, 12 oz., 10 oz., 8 oz. and 6 oz.
Dimensions: 13" H x 10.5" W x 12.5" D
These attractive, sturdy coffee machines are designed to make cup after delicious cup of fresh brewed coffee, each in under a minute, without the mess of traditional coffee makers. So stop just thinking about the ease and convenience of a Keurig brewing system and get one for your home or office now. You'll wonder how you ever managed without it!
Author : Fielding
http://www.articleclick.com/Article/Comparison-of-Keurig-Single-Cup-Home-Brewers/1059471
5 Tips on Choosing the Right Commercial Coffee Maker
The choice available today on commercial coffee makers is endless - Coffee urns, plumbed coffee makers, thermo serves, airpots to name a few.
Hence making a checklist of the features you require from your coffee maker becomes a important to do before you go shopping for it.
Is finding a cheap coffee maker your top priority or are you willing to spend premium dollars in exchange for a quality machine? Would you like to have as many variations of coffee flavors as possible or do you just personally prefer a plain brew?
Here is a list of the top 5 tips that you can use:
Hence making a checklist of the features you require from your coffee maker becomes a important to do before you go shopping for it.
Is finding a cheap coffee maker your top priority or are you willing to spend premium dollars in exchange for a quality machine? Would you like to have as many variations of coffee flavors as possible or do you just personally prefer a plain brew?
Here is a list of the top 5 tips that you can use:
- Check out which brand of coffee maker manufacturer offers the best line of commercial coffee makers.
- Decide which features are most important for you.
- How technologically advanced do you want your commercial coffee maker to be?
- Determine how many cups of coffee you need the coffee maker to brew at any given time.
- Make sure that the commercial coffee maker that you will purchase is easy to clean.
Remember that not all long-existing coffee maker brands have a great line of coffee makers for commercial use. To determine which brands are the best, read the online reviews of different brands.
You can gain valuable feedback from the experts who know exactly what to look for You can also read through the actual experience of online users who have bought and actually used a particular model.
Some coffee makers are all-in-one machines which have grinders, water filters and brewers. There are also commercial coffee makers which are a virtual beverage maker - which can brew anything from a simple cup of black coffee, to high-grade tea, to a rich cup of hot chocolate.
Before flipping out that credit card, make sure that you have an idea about the features which are most important to you so that you can get the best value for your money.
There are commercial coffee makers which have digital controls, LCD display screens, auto-off and Pause 'N Serve features. If you want a great coffee maker with nifty features, you may have to pay a premium price for it.
This is especially important if you will be using the coffee maker in an office or restaurant.
This is one area that most homeowners take for granted. No matter how feature-packed the commercial coffeemaker is, it will be a trouble to maintain if it is difficult to clean. You will actually dread using the commercial coffeemaker that you bought if there are an endless number of steps involved in cleaning the machine.
Author: Vogi
http://www.articleclick.com/Article/5-Tips-on-Choosing-the-Right-Commercial-Coffee-Maker/1039539
How Do Coffee Grinders Work?
A Trip to the grocery store and a walk down the coffee aisle, is where you'll see coffee grinders and coffee beans.
The coffee grinder has become all so very popular for home use and popularity of espresso and other coffee drinks has blown out of coffee proportion in the last two decades. Coffee shops keep popping up every where and the need of many coffee drinkers to grind their own coffee beans in their coffee grinders.
Coffee grinders will grind roasted coffee beans into tiny little grounds that are either fine or coarse. By grinding your own coffee, its totally up to you on how you like it best.
Coffee grinders will produce fine or medium grounds which are best for old style coffee makers. Those who love espresso will want to grind the beans into a fine grind, similar to sugar or salt. Coarse coffee grounds are good for percolators or vacuum brewers.
Coffee grinders come in two main types. The first type of many coffee grinders use rotating steel blades. These blades on the coffee grinders chop up the coffee beans, making it o-so-nice for you.
The bladed coffee grinders allow the coffee lover to control the type of grounds. The type of grounds the bladed coffee grinder makes depends on how long you grind the beans.
Other types of coffee grinders uses a grinder wheel. This is called a burr grinder. To get coarse or fine grounds, you move the burr on the coffee grinder. Many people say this type of coffee grinder allows you more control as to the type of grounds you make.
The price of a burr grinder really depends on the type of wheel, whether it is flat or cone-shaped. The burr coffee grinder with the cone-shaped wheel rotates slowly and the coffee grinder will plug up less frequently.
If you chose coffee grinders that work in two different ways. Manual coffee grinders come with a crank on the side.
(this is the old-fashion way) You have to crank the handle manually until all the coffee beans are grounded.
If you don't want to do that much work to have freshly ground coffee, you should probably shop around for electric coffee grinders. Electric coffee grinders are the most popular coffee grinder on the market today. Many electric coffee grinders are small and inexpensive so you can carry them anywhere to grind a perfect cup of coffee.
There are advantages to grinding your own coffee with coffee grinders. You can grind coffee that suits your taste and not rely on pre-packaged coffee grounds.
Coffee grinders can be found in most stores and online. A coffee grinder can range in price from about $20 to several hundred dollars. The coffee beans can be purchased at grocery stores or at a specialty coffee shop.
How you want your coffee to taste and the type of coffee you brew is all up to you.
Author : Paul
http://www.articleclick.com/Article/How-Do-Coffee-Grinders-Work-/914479
The coffee grinder has become all so very popular for home use and popularity of espresso and other coffee drinks has blown out of coffee proportion in the last two decades. Coffee shops keep popping up every where and the need of many coffee drinkers to grind their own coffee beans in their coffee grinders.
Coffee grinders will grind roasted coffee beans into tiny little grounds that are either fine or coarse. By grinding your own coffee, its totally up to you on how you like it best.
Coffee grinders will produce fine or medium grounds which are best for old style coffee makers. Those who love espresso will want to grind the beans into a fine grind, similar to sugar or salt. Coarse coffee grounds are good for percolators or vacuum brewers.
Coffee grinders come in two main types. The first type of many coffee grinders use rotating steel blades. These blades on the coffee grinders chop up the coffee beans, making it o-so-nice for you.
The bladed coffee grinders allow the coffee lover to control the type of grounds. The type of grounds the bladed coffee grinder makes depends on how long you grind the beans.
Other types of coffee grinders uses a grinder wheel. This is called a burr grinder. To get coarse or fine grounds, you move the burr on the coffee grinder. Many people say this type of coffee grinder allows you more control as to the type of grounds you make.
The price of a burr grinder really depends on the type of wheel, whether it is flat or cone-shaped. The burr coffee grinder with the cone-shaped wheel rotates slowly and the coffee grinder will plug up less frequently.
If you chose coffee grinders that work in two different ways. Manual coffee grinders come with a crank on the side.
(this is the old-fashion way) You have to crank the handle manually until all the coffee beans are grounded.
If you don't want to do that much work to have freshly ground coffee, you should probably shop around for electric coffee grinders. Electric coffee grinders are the most popular coffee grinder on the market today. Many electric coffee grinders are small and inexpensive so you can carry them anywhere to grind a perfect cup of coffee.
There are advantages to grinding your own coffee with coffee grinders. You can grind coffee that suits your taste and not rely on pre-packaged coffee grounds.
Coffee grinders can be found in most stores and online. A coffee grinder can range in price from about $20 to several hundred dollars. The coffee beans can be purchased at grocery stores or at a specialty coffee shop.
How you want your coffee to taste and the type of coffee you brew is all up to you.
Author : Paul
http://www.articleclick.com/Article/How-Do-Coffee-Grinders-Work-/914479
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