If you did not know, Brazil is the largest coffee producer in the world, followed by Vietnam and Indonesia. The following are 2023 figures from Wikipedia:
Brazil 3,405,267 tonnes
Vietnam 1,956,782 tonnes
Indonesia 760,192 tonnes
Colombia 680,858 tonnes
Ethiopia 559,400tonnes
Further down the scale are countries like Rwanda with 27,104 tonnes and Guinea with 200,000 tonnes, Boliva at 23,579. This is why we always snap up a Boliva when we hear of one!
The scale of difference is massive, and of course some of the larger producers are selling containers full of coffee to the big names like the supermarkets, Starbucks and Costa whilst the smaller lots are coming to the roasters that we know and love. What is true is that without the bigger buyers taking the majority of the world production and supporting those farms the industry would be in crisis. So when I pass a Costa or a Starbucks I understand that were they not buying, we would have a huge surplus and the coffee price would plummet for the top coffee producing countries.
