Coffee may seem a mundane part of everyday life, but understanding how it spread around the world soon leads into a discussion of topics such as globalization, colonialism, industrialization, environmental history, and the rise of consumer societies.  For an in-depth account of that history, listen to the A History of Coffee Podcast series made by Jonathan Morris, the Coffee Historian who authored this lesson. Illustrations for the series are posted on Instagram by both Jonathan and the Filter Stories coffee podcast channel, which also hosts other series on topics such as The Science of Coffee.  Another way into coffee history is to watch some of the documentaries available, such as Coffee: The Drink that Changed America. 

One of the most fascinating aspects of coffee’s history is how the ways in which it is prepared and consumed have come to vary so widely. For many countries and peoples, coffee is a crucial part of their identity: the centrality of coffee in the Arab world was recognized by UNESCO as part of the intangible heritage of humanity. Turkish coffee has also been granted UNESCO recognition, based not just on the distinctiveness of the coffee itself, but the social aspects of how and where it is consumed, such as in coffee houses listening to storytellers or traditional music. 

Coffee’s arrival in Europe, alongside other beverages such as tea and chocolate, and addictive substances such as tobacco, created a whole new set of consumption habits around so-called intoxicants. This website explores these changes in the cities of Amsterdam, Hamburg, London, and Stockholm. Coffee houses also became centers of cultural life in Vienna – this video shows how the tradition was still being continued in the late 20th century. Several historic European coffee houses are still operating: The Café Procope in Paris was founded as a coffee house in 1686 and claims to be the oldest restaurant in the world, while in Venice, Caffè Florian, situated on the side of St. Mark’s Square, has been in continuous operation since 1720 and epitomizes the tradition of the Grand Café. 

Coffee’s history contains many dark episodes linked to colonialism and the exploitation of indigenous peoples. Jonathan Morris and his colleague Peter D’Sena call for a decolonization of coffee’s history in this award-winning article and this podcast episode.   Augustine Sedgwick describes how indigenous peoples were coerced into coffee production in El Salvador. The New York Times published an expose of how the Haitian revolution against French rule in what was the leading center of coffee production in the 18th century is connected to the poverty of the country today. Slavery was only definitively abolished in Brazil in the 1880s shortly after these photographs of enslaved coffee workers were taken. 

Technology has played a key role in the development of methods of preparation and brewing. Commercial coffee roasting began in the 19th century while the evolution of the Italian espresso machine began in the early 20th century, and is celebrated in  the Museum of the Italian Coffee Machine. But it wasn’t just machinery that transformed coffee consumption: Marketing didn’t just establish the leading brands, it promoted the very idea of coffee drinking itself. Just watch some of these weird, wonderful, and now frankly unacceptable, historic television ads for coffee. 

There is a wealth of information out there on the contemporary coffee business. The International Coffee Organization is the primary source of data about the global production and trade in coffee today. The Specialty Coffee Association publishes a wide variety of deep dive studies into the contemporary coffee scene as well as hosting the World Barista Championships. Online magazines and portals such as Perfect Daily Grind, Daily Coffee News and the World Coffee Portal provide a way into the diversity of the coffee world today.  

Issues around equity in coffee remain a major concern. Fairtrade International is the most prominent of various certification programs trying to ensure that farmers can generate a household income from growing coffee. The International Women’s Coffee Alliance highlights the role of women at all points in the coffee chain. However, the rising demand for coffee in producer countries in regions such as South East Asia has created new possibilities for coffee growers.

The greatest threat to coffee in the future is likely climate change. Organizations like World Coffee Research are working to address this while attempts to promote sustainability in coffee are now looking at how to bring together economic and environmental concerns.

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