Coffee industry of Timor Leste facts for kids
The coffee industry of Timor Leste (also known as East Timor) is super important for the country's economy. It's the biggest export after oil! The Portuguese brought coffee to Timor Leste in the 1800s. Since then, growing coffee has created lots of jobs and income for people, especially in rural areas. However, the industry faces challenges like changing global coffee prices, poor roads, and not enough money for improvements.
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How Coffee Came to Timor Leste
Coffee is a main product that Timor Leste sells to other countries. For a long time, different groups fought for control of Timor Leste. These included local groups, the Dutch, and the Portuguese. In 1749, the island was split. The Dutch took the west, and the Portuguese took the east.
The Portuguese introduced coffee growing to Eastern Timor in the early 1800s. This helped the country grow and develop. In 2017, coffee made up about $26.4 million of Timor Leste's total exports. That was about 24% of everything the country sold!
Who Grows Coffee in Timor Leste?
For many people in Timor Leste, coffee growing is a way to earn extra money. In 2003, it was estimated that about 200,000 people relied on coffee for their main income. Coffee is grown in many areas. Big amounts come from Manufahi, Ainaro, and Liquica. Other areas like Aileu and Bobonaro also grow coffee.
The biggest coffee growing area is Ermera. The World Bank says that almost half of all the coffee in Timor Leste comes from this district!
The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries in Timor Leste says that coffee farms are often "relatively unmanaged." This means people don't spend a lot of time cleaning, pruning, or planting new trees. Instead, they focus on clearing land around the coffee bushes. This makes it easier to harvest the beans later.
Coffee farmers often get help from family or hire people during harvest time. This helps them pick as much coffee as possible. An average coffee farming family has about 6 members. They might earn between $127 and $200 per year from coffee. Sometimes, extra workers are paid with goods or by trading services. Many farmers say they don't own the land they use. They often use "lands abandoned by former estates." Even though Timorese law says this land belongs to the state, it's often overlooked. This is because coffee farming helps the economy so much.
Money from international groups like the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank has also helped coffee production grow. In 2016, the ADB gave a $225,000 grant. This money was to help reduce poverty by improving the amount and quality of coffee grown by smallholder farmers. David Freedman from ADB said, "Coffee is grown by almost one-third of all Timorese households." He also noted it has been the country’s largest non-oil export for 150 years. These grants help farmers invest in their farms. This creates jobs, stable income, and helps the economy grow.
The Quality of Timor Leste Coffee
Timor Leste produces less than 0.2% of the world's coffee. But it's special because it's the largest single source of organic coffee globally! The National Co-operative Business Association calls it "one of the finest and most unique coffees in the world." This is partly because of the rich volcanic soil where the coffee grows. This soil is known for the ‘Hibrido de Timor’ coffee type. A top coffee expert, Alf Kramer, even said Timor's coffee is "among the top 1% in quality and price worldwide."
Most of the world's coffee isn't grown wild at high altitudes on a tropical island. This makes Timor Leste's coffee growing method very unique. Since farmers don't interfere much with the plants, the coffee can be called organic.
The Hibrido de Timor is a special type of coffee plant. It's a natural mix between Coffea arabica (Arabica coffee) and C. canephora (Robusta coffee). This mix means it can grow in less fertile soil. While it might lose a little bit of the strong taste from the better-known types, it creates a unique blend. This blend can survive the tougher conditions in Timor. Yet, it still keeps a coffee quality that is "among the best in the world."
Timorese coffee farmers usually process coffee right after picking it. They turn the coffee cherry into parchment. In 2002, about 75% of coffee in Timor Leste was processed this way. Coffee cherries start to go bad just hours after being picked. But properly stored parchment lasts much longer.
Challenges for the Coffee Industry
Global Coffee Prices
Coffee is the main source of income for many rural families. It also provides many jobs in Timor Leste. However, changes in global coffee prices can cause problems for farmers. If prices drop, farmers earn less money. In the past, Timorese farmers haven't been able to make the most of high coffee prices. They also don't invest much money into their farms. If a big global coffee crisis happened, it could force other farmers around the world to stop growing coffee. This might actually help Timorese producers later when prices recover. But right now, Timor Leste's coffee industry doesn't have enough money to become a major player in the global coffee trade.
Roads and Infrastructure
During the time Indonesia controlled Timor Leste, roads and other structures improved a lot. The amount of paved roads went from almost none to about 4500 km! But even with these improvements, there are still problems. A study in 2012 found that poor roads, old mills, and other technical issues were holding back the coffee industry. The study said that with more money and updates, farmers could earn almost four times more!
Luckily, things are getting better. Timor Leste is benefiting from the Bayu-Undan oil and gas field. Also, the World Bank and Asian Development Bank are investing money. New roads are being built. This will help rural areas grow and make it easier for coffee farmers to expand their production. Better roads will also help them sell their coffee in bigger global markets.
The Market for Timor Leste Coffee
Timor Leste's coffee is special. It's known as a high-quality, organic product, and it's often Fairtrade certified. This helps protect it from big changes in the global market. However, there hasn't been much research or marketing to help sell this coffee worldwide. A big worry is that even though the quality of Timor's coffee is getting better, it doesn't always meet the very best international standards yet.
One big reason it's hard to sell more Timorese coffee is the cost of making it. It costs more to produce coffee in Timor Leste compared to other countries. This is because the country uses the US dollar as its money. Also, the poor roads make things more expensive. But projects like the Dili to Baucau Highway are working to fix the roads. Another factor is that labor costs (what farmers pay workers) are higher in Timor Leste than in nearby countries like Indonesia. Since the government uses US dollars, it can't make its money worth less to make exports cheaper. All these things together make it harder for Timor Leste's coffee to compete on price in the world market.
The international market for organic coffee already has many sellers. Timor Leste needs to find more efficient ways to produce coffee. This will help its coffee market grow globally.
Why Coffee is Important to Timor Leste
Coffee makes up 24% of Timor Leste's economy. For about 25% of the country's people, coffee provides as much as 90% of their yearly income! So, the coffee industry is very important for jobs, income, and the country's overall wealth.
The income from coffee can change a lot depending on the international market. But farmers are not likely to stop growing coffee. This is because the methods needed to produce coffee are simple. Big companies like Starbucks are also investing in coffee farms through co-op programs. This means more and more coffee farmers will benefit. Andrew Linneman, a Vice-President at Starbucks, said that about 22,000 farmers in Timor Leste supply coffee to Starbucks through a co-operative.
