Need to know about Arabica and Robusta beans? Be sure to check out our piece “ What’s the Difference Between Arabica vs Robusta Coffee Beans” for more. One of the most famous Arabica coffees in Sumatra is called Mandheling. To counter it, planters switch to Robusta coffee, and today just about 25% of Indonesia coffee exports are Arabica. Sumatra coffee trade flourished until the disaster struck in the form of a disease called rust that almost completely wiped out coffee plants throughout Indonesia. By the end of the century, the Dutch East Indies became the world’s largest coffee producer, surpassing both Ethiopia and Arabia. Coffee growing soon spread to other islands as well, including Sumatra, the second-largest island in Indonesia. The incredible fertile soil proved to be ideal for coffee, and just several years later, the first shipment of Java coffee reached Europe. At the urging of Nicolaes Witsen, the burgomaster of Amsterdam, Dutch governor of Batavia ordered coffee plantations to be raised in Dutch East Indies, today known as Indonesia. Dutch East India Company was very interested in breaking that monopoly.
In the early 18th century, coffee markets in Europe were under a monopoly of Arabian growers. The surface of the island is covered by a thick layer of volcanic soil, rich in nutrients and extremely fertile, making it perfect for coffee growing. Similar to many other Indonesian islands, Sumatra was formed by a volcanic eruption.
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