Costa Rica and the History of Coffee

The facts and history on Costa Rica and coffee.producers, including Mariano Montealegre, who was
Coffee and Costa Rica:the main promoter of the crop between 1830
"He proudly shows us the branches of the coffeeand 1840, decided to take on the task of
trees, bent under the weight of their crop. Heexporting it directly to England. The first shipment
touches them tenderly, as a father would hiswas made in 1843 thanks to the efforts of the
children... his eyes shining with happiness. 'Do youcaptain of an English ship, The Monarch, which
know, doctor, why these branches curve sotransported 5,505 one-hundred-pound sacks to
toward the earth? They are grateful to theEurope.
farmer, and bow before God.'" JoséThe first two Heads of State of Costa Rica, Juan
Corvetti, describing a visit to the farm of ItalianMora Fernández and Braulio Carrillo, strongly
immigrant T. Malavasi,Tres Ríos, 1935supported the coffee trade, as they sensed that
Coffee and Costa Rica were meant for eachit could generate economic growth and enhance
other, and they have grown and prosperedCosta Rica's position on the international market.
together, complementing each other in the pursuitAs coffee production developed further, the
of excellence. Costa Rica repealed the deathcountry's economy, society, and culture flourished.
penalty in 1870 and abolished the army in 1948,But that is another story...
and coffee supported those reforms with its highThe story of Costa Rica's coffee is the story of
productivity and environmentally friendlythe nation that saw it come to life over two
disposition.centuries ago. Throughout the years, it has been
In a country which has enacted laws protectingthe yardstick by which the country's life and
21% of its territory in order to preserve the 5%economy have been measured.
of the world's biodiversity it shelters, Costa RicansCoffee bears fruit...
are encouraged by their environment to loveWhat does coffee have to do with the theater?
what they do, and to do it well.What does the tax year have to do with the
In its desire to protect the environment, Costacoffee harvest? In Costa Rica such relationships
Rica has carefully tended the soils and climate thatare essential, and are part of the benefits
are best suited to coffee production. As Costaobtained from the "Golden Grain", as it is called in
Rica's soils have been enriched by volcanic ash,Costa Rica.
they contain a slight degree of tropical acidity.Coffee exports to Europe during the
They are also rich in organic matter, which makesmid-nineteenth century brought many
for good distribution of the coffee plant's rootopportunities for Costa Rica, opening a window to
system, enabling them to retain humidity andthe Old World that would eventually bring in
facilitating oxygenation. This combination ofrailroads, a postal service, printing presses, the
factors invigorates the coffee plants and is one ofcountry's first university, and what is perhaps the
many elements contributing to the quality ofregion's greatest architectural treasure: the
Costa Rican coffee.National Theater. Designed as a miniature copy of
Over 70% of the country's coffee is produced inthe Paris Opera House, the National Theater,
the mountains, which vary in altitude from 3,280located in the center of the capital city of San
to 5,580 feet above sea level. MountainJosé, became a symbol of coffee-driven
temperatures range from 63 to 73 degreesprosperity because it was initially financed by
Fahrenheit. Sunlight is stable, and precipitationcoffee taxes.
levels are ideal. All this makes for as dependableCoffee did not simply transform the Costa Rican
and high-quality a coffee crop as any produced ineconomy and its landscape, it also changed
a greenhouse.consumer behavior and working patterns. The
Costa Rica is the only country in the world whichdevelopment of a taste for coffee was, perhaps,
has issued an executive ordera reflection of the democratic society that was
(N°19302-MAG, 4 December 1989) banningbeing forged. In the words of historians Peters
the production of any variety of coffee otherand Samper, "Drinking coffee became a ritual of
than Arabica. This standard is made possible byCosta Rican society, a society that was free of
the expertise, experience and favorable physicaleconomic and social distinctions; everyone drank
conditions which converge in this remarkable land.it, from the simplest farmer or laborer to the
The story of Costa Rica's coffee is the story ofmost prominent politician."
the nation that saw it come to life over twoAnd, just as Costa Rica lives and breathes
centuries ago. Throughout the years, it has beendemocracy and peace, it also lives and breathes
the yardstick by which the country's life andcoffee. It is no coincidence that per capita
economy have been measured.consumption of this drink is the highest of all
Our grandparents tell us...coffee-producing countries in the world. The close
Coffee was first brought to Costa Rica during therelationship between coffee and daily life led Costa
last decade of the eighteenth century. So we areRicans to plan their calendar around the
told in a letter sent by Panamanian traderharvesting, processing and sale of coffee, to such
Agustín de Gana to the Governor of Costaan extent that the Costa Rican tax year is based
Rica, Don José Vásquez y Téllez,on the coffee trade: it begins in October and ends
announcing that he was sending two pounds ofin September of the following year.
coffee.The history books tells us that Father FelixFor a long time, in fact, even the school year
Velarde was the first Costa Rican coffee grower;revolved around the coffee harvest. But that did
his will, dated 1816, refers to a plot of land onnot prevent education in Costa Rica from
which coffee had been planted. Tradition has itbecoming in 1886, what it still is today: free and
that he bequeathed the seeds to his neighbors,mandatory.
inviting them to plant them. His suggestion mustTextbooks and teachers arriving from Chile during
have taken hold, because the first recordedthe early years of the coffee trade, and later on,
export of Costa Rican coffee, a one-hundredfrom Europe, became part of a tradition which
pound shipment to Panama, took place in 1820.also included a unique land ownership structure, in
By 1832 coffee was also being exported to Chilewhich small and medium-sized properties have
by Jorge Stiepel, a German businessman living inremained a part of the rural landscape to this day.
Costa Rica. In Chile, the coffee was repackagedThat landscape has changed over the years.
and sent to England, where it was sold asWhat has not changed is Costa Rica's continuing
"Valparaíso Chilean Coffee".love affair with coffee.
Meanwhile, a group of forward-looking coffee