{{Short description|Species of coffee plant}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2018}} {{Use American English|date=April 2025}} {{cs1 config|name-list-style=vanc|display-authors=3}} {{About|the species of coffee plant|the coffee house chain|% Arabica|methods of preparation of a drink|Arabic coffee}} {{Speciesbox | name = | image = Coffee Flowers.JPG | image_caption = ''Coffea arabica'' flowers | image2 = Starr 070308-5472 Coffea arabica.jpg | image2_alt = Several coffee cherries growing along a branch; some are green and some are beginning to ripen | image2_caption = ''Coffea arabica'' fruit | status = EN | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Moat, J. |author2=O'Sullivan, R.J. |author3=Gole, T.W. |author4=Davis, A.P. |date=2020 |title=''Coffea arabica'' |volume=2020 |article-number=e.T18289789A174149937 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T18289789A174149937.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref> | genus = Coffea | species = arabica | authority = L. }}
'''''Coffea arabica''''' ({{IPAc-en|ə|ˈ|r|æ|b|ɪ|k|ə}}), also known as the '''Arabica coffee''', is a species of flowering plant in the coffee and madder family Rubiaceae. It is believed to be the first species of coffee to have been cultivated and is the dominant cultivar, representing about 60% of global production.<ref name="CoffeeProduction">{{cite web |title=Coffee: World Markets and Trade |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture – Foreign Agricultural Service |date=16 June 2017 |url=https://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/fas/tropprod//2010s/2017/tropprod-06-16-2017.pdf |access-date=8 December 2017 |via=Cornell University |archive-date=8 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208175005/http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/fas/tropprod//2010s/2017/tropprod-06-16-2017.pdf}}</ref> Coffee produced from the less acidic, more bitter, and more highly caffeinated robusta bean (''C. canephora'') makes up most of the remaining coffee production. The natural populations of ''Coffea arabica'' are restricted to the forests of South Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Yemen.<ref>Meyer, Frederick G. 1965. Notes on wild ''Coffea arabica'' from Southwestern Ethiopia, with some historical considerations. Economic Botany 19: 136–151.</ref><ref>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AJdlfSFCmVIC&pg=PA21 |title=Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality |last1=Söndahl |first1=M. R. |last2=van der Vossen |first2=H. A. M. |date=2005 |publisher=Elsevier Academic Press |isbn=978-0-12-370371-2 |editor-last1=Illy |editor-first1=Andrea |edition=Second |page=21 |chapter=The plant: Origin, production and botany |editor-last2=Viani |editor-first2=Rinantonio}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Montagnon |first1=Christophe |last2=Rossi |first2=Veronica |last3=Guercio |first3=Carolina |last4=Sheibani |first4=Faris |date=2022-08-20 |title=Vernacular Names and Genetics of Cultivated Coffee (Coffea arabica) in Yemen |journal=Agronomy |language=en |volume=12 |issue=8 |page=1970 |doi=10.3390/agronomy12081970 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2022Agron..12.1970M |issn=2073-4395}}</ref>
==Description== Wild plants grow between {{convert|9|and|12|m|ft|abbr=on}} tall, and have an open branching system; the leaves are opposite, simple elliptic-ovate to oblong, {{convert|6|–|12|cm|in|round=0.5|abbr=on}} long and {{convert|4|–|8|cm|in|round=0.5|abbr=on}} broad, glossy dark green, with prominent veins and wavy margins.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nicaragua |first=Notes from |date=2018-01-09 |title=Coffea arabica |url=https://plantsandtreesofnicaragua.wordpress.com/2018/01/09/coffea-arabica/ |access-date=2026-04-03 |website=Plants and Trees of Nicaragua |language=en}}</ref>The flowers are white, 10–15 mm in diameter, and grow in axillary clusters of 2 to 9. The seeds are contained in a drupe (commonly called a "cherry") 10–15 mm in diameter, maturing bright red to purple and typically containing two seeds, often called coffee beans.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Coffea arabica (Arabian Coffee, Coffee, Coffee Plant) {{!}} North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox |url=https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/coffea-arabica/ |access-date=2026-01-13 |website=plants.ces.ncsu.edu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Coffea arabica - Plant Finder |url=https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=b632 |access-date=2026-01-13 |website=www.missouribotanicalgarden.org}}</ref>
==Taxonomy== The botanical name ''Coffea arabica'' was formally published by Carl Linnaeus in his ''Species plantarum'' in 1753.<ref>{{Cite book| last1=Linnaeus| first1=Carl| date=1753| title=Species plantarum| volume=1| page=172| url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/358191}}</ref> The species had been described and depicted before, as Linnaeus was able to refer to Antoine de Jussieu, who named it ''Jasminum arabicum'', published in 1715, after studying a specimen sent to him from the Botanic Garden of Amsterdam,<ref>{{Cite journal| last1=Jusieu| first1=A. de| date=1715| title=Histoire du café| journal=Histoire de l'Académie Royale des Sciences| volume=1713| page=388 (291 in the 1739 re-edition)| url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/27465270)}}</ref><ref>Jussieu stated that coffee had been known in Europe for about sixty years by then.</ref> Gaspard Bauhin's ''Pinax'' of 1623 under 'Evonymus IV'<ref>{{Cite book| last1=Bauhin| first1=C.| date=1623| title=Pinax theatri botanici| page=428 (erroneously cited as 498 by Linnaeus)| url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/489575}}</ref> and Prospero Alpini's ''De plantis Aegypti liber'', published in 1592.<ref>{{Cite book| last1=Alpini| first1=P.| date=1592| title=De plantis Aegypti liber| page=26 (erroneously cited as 36 by Linnaeus)| url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/58836530}}</ref>
''Coffea arabica'' is one of the polyploid species of the genus ''Coffea'', as it carries four copies of the eleven chromosomes (44 total) instead of the 2 copies of diploid species. Specifically, ''Coffea arabica'' is itself the result of a hybridization between the diploids ''Coffea canephora'' and ''Coffea eugenioides''<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Scalabrin |first1=Simone |last2=Toniutti |first2=Lucile |last3=Di Gaspero |first3=Gabriele |last4=Scaglione |first4=Davide |last5=Magris |first5=Gabriele |last6=Vidotto |first6=Michele |last7=Pinosio |first7=Sara |last8=Cattonaro |first8=Federica |last9=Magni |first9=Federica |last10=Jurman |first10=Irena |last11=Cerutti |first11=Mario |last12=Suggi Liverani |first12=Furio |last13=Navarini |first13=Luciano |last14=Del Terra |first14=Lorenzo |last15=Pellegrino |first15=Gloria |date=2020-03-13 |title=A single polyploidization event at the origin of the tetraploid genome of Coffea arabica is responsible for the extremely low genetic variation in wild and cultivated germplasm |journal=Scientific Reports |language=en |volume=10 |issue=1 |article-number=4642 |doi=10.1038/s41598-020-61216-7 |issn=2045-2322 |pmc=7069947 |pmid=32170172 |bibcode=2020NatSR..10.4642S }}</ref>,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lashermes|first1=P.|last2=Combes|first2=M.-C.|last3=Robert|first3=J.|last4=Trouslot|first4=P.|last5=D'Hont|first5=A.|last6=Anthony|first6=F.|last7=Charrier|first7=A.|date=1999-03-01|title=Molecular characterisation and origin of the Coffea arabica L. genome|journal=Molecular and General Genetics|volume=261|issue=2|pages=259–266|doi=10.1007/s004380050965|issn=0026-8925|pmid=10102360|s2cid=7978085}}</ref> thus making it an allotetraploid, with ''two'' copies of two different genomes. This hybridization event at the origin of ''Coffea arabica'' is estimated between 1.08 million and 543,000 years ago and is linked to changing environmental conditions in East Africa.<ref>{{Cite journal|vauthors=Bawin Y, Ruttink T, Staelens A, et al|date=2020|title=Phylogenomic analysis clarifies the evolutionary origin of Coffea arabica|journal=Journal of Systematics and Evolution|volume=59|issue=5|pages=953–963|doi=10.1111/jse.12694|s2cid=234481707|url=https://lirias.kuleuven.be/handle/123456789/656868|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Salojärvi |first1=Jarkko |last2=Rambani |first2=Aditi |last3=Yu |first3=Zhe |last4=Guyot |first4=Romain |last5=Strickler |first5=Susan |last6=Lepelley |first6=Maud |last7=Wang |first7=Cui |last8=Rajaraman |first8=Sitaram |last9=Rastas |first9=Pasi |last10=Zheng |first10=Chunfang |last11=Muñoz |first11=Daniella Santos |last12=Meidanis |first12=João |last13=Paschoal |first13=Alexandre Rossi |last14=Bawin |first14=Yves |last15=Krabbenhoft |first15=Trevor J. |last16=Wang |first16=Zhen Qin |last17=Fleck |first17=Steven J. |last18=Aussel |first18=Rudy |last19=Bellanger |first19=Laurence |last20=Charpagne |first20=Aline |last21=Fournier |first21=Coralie |last22=Kassam |first22=Mohamed |last23=Lefebvre |first23=Gregory |last24=Métairon |first24=Sylviane |last25=Moine |first25=Déborah |last26=Rigoreau |first26=Michel |last27=Stolte |first27=Jens |last28=Hamon |first28=Perla |last29=Couturon |first29=Emmanuel |last30=Tranchant-Dubreuil |first30=Christine |last31=Mukherjee |first31=Minakshi |last32=Lan |first32=Tianying |last33=Engelhardt |first33=Jan |last34=Stadler |first34=Peter |last35=Correia De Lemos |first35=Samara Mireza |last36=Suzuki |first36=Suzana Ivamoto |last37=Sumirat |first37=Ucu |last38=Wai |first38=Ching Man |last39=Dauchot |first39=Nicolas |last40=Orozco-Arias |first40=Simon |last41=Garavito |first41=Andrea |last42=Kiwuka |first42=Catherine |last43=Musoli |first43=Pascal |last44=Nalukenge |first44=Anne |last45=Guichoux |first45=Erwan |last46=Reinout |first46=Havinga |last47=Smit |first47=Martin |last48=Carretero-Paulet |first48=Lorenzo |last49=Filho |first49=Oliveiro Guerreiro |last50=Braghini |first50=Masako Toma |last51=Padilha |first51=Lilian |last52=Sera |first52=Gustavo Hiroshi |last53=Ruttink |first53=Tom |last54=Henry |first54=Robert |last55=Marraccini |first55=Pierre |last56=Van de Peer |first56=Yves |last57=Andrade |first57=Alan |last58=Domingues |first58=Douglas |last59=Giuliano |first59=Giovanni |last60=Mueller |first60=Lukas |last61=Pereira |first61=Luiz Filipe |last62=Plaisance |first62=Stephane |last63=Poncet |first63=Valerie |last64=Rombauts |first64=Stephane |last65=Sankoff |first65=David |last66=Albert |first66=Victor A. |last67=Crouzillat |first67=Dominique |last68=de Kochko |first68=Alexandre |last69=Descombes |first69=Patrick |title=The genome and population genomics of allopolyploid ''Coffea arabica'' reveal the diversification history of modern coffee cultivars |journal=Nature Genetics |date=2024 |volume=56 |issue=4 |pages=721–731 |doi=10.1038/s41588-024-01695-w |doi-access=free|pmid=38622339 |pmc=11018527 }}</ref>
==Distribution and habitat== Endemic to the southwestern highlands of Ethiopia,<ref name="Martinez-Torres-2006">{{cite book|last1=Martinez-Torres|first1=Maria Elena|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pkvKhxwfVMIC&pg=PA6|title=Organic Coffee|publisher=Ohio University|date=2006|isbn=978-0-89680-247-6|access-date=26 January 2016}}</ref> ''Coffea arabica'' is grown in dozens of countries between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Tropic of Cancer.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hoffmann|first=James|title=The World Atlas of Coffee 2nd Edition|publisher=Mitchell Beazley|date=2018|isbn=978-1-78472-429-0|location=Great Britain|page=12|language=English}}</ref> It is commonly used as an understory shrub. It has also been recovered from the Boma Plateau in South Sudan. ''Coffea arabica'' is also found on Mount Marsabit in northern Kenya, but it is unclear whether this is a truly native or naturalised occurrence; recent studies support it being naturalised.{{sfnp|Charrier|Berthaud|1985|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=u1HtBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA20 20]}}<ref name="IUCN" /> The species is widely naturalised in areas outside its native land, in many parts of Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia, India, China, and assorted islands in the Caribbean and in the Pacific.<ref>[http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?name_id=45400 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families, ''Coffea arabica'']</ref>
Arabica coffee typically grows at high elevations with moderate temperatures and well drained soils.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Arabica coffee manual for Lao PDR |url=https://www.fao.org/4/ae939e/ae939e03.htm |access-date=2026-03-29 |website=www.fao.org}}</ref>The species thrives in tropical climates with consistent rainfall and partial shade.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Introduction |url=https://www.fao.org/4/x6939e/X6939e01.htm |access-date=2026-03-29 |website=www.fao.org}}</ref>The native habitat is characterized by montane forest with rich biodiversity.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ahmed |first1=Selena |last2=Brinkley |first2=Sarah |last3=Smith |first3=Erin |last4=Sela |first4=Ariella |last5=Theisen |first5=Mitchell |last6=Thibodeau |first6=Cyrena |last7=Warne |first7=Teresa |last8=Anderson |first8=Evan |last9=Van Dusen |first9=Natalie |last10=Giuliano |first10=Peter |last11=Ionescu |first11=Kim Elena |last12=Cash |first12=Sean B. |date=2021 |title=Climate Change and Coffee Quality: Systematic Review on the Effects of Environmental and Management Variation on Secondary Metabolites and Sensory Attributes of Coffea arabica and Coffea canephora |journal=Frontiers in Plant Science |volume=12 |article-number=708013 |doi=10.3389/fpls.2021.708013 |doi-access=free |issn=1664-462X |pmc=8531415 |pmid=34691093 |bibcode=2021FrPS...1208013A }}</ref>
The coffee tree was first brought to Hawaii in 1813, and it began to be extensively grown by about 1850.<ref name=hawaii>{{cite book|last1=Hargreaves|first1=Dorothy|last2=Hargreaves|first2=Bob|title=Tropical Trees of Hawaii|date=1964|publisher=Hargreaves|location=Kailua, Hawaii|page=17}}</ref> It was formerly more widely grown, especially in Kona,<ref name=hawaii/> and it persists after cultivation in many areas. In some valleys, it is a highly invasive weed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hear.org/pier/species/coffea_arabica.htm|title=Coffea arabica (PIER species info)|access-date=15 July 2011|archive-date=21 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021063807/http://www.hear.org/pier/species/coffea_arabica.htm}}</ref> In the Udawattakele and Gannoruwa Forest Reserves near Kandy, Sri Lanka, coffee shrubs are also a problematic invasive species.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Bhikkhu |last1=Nyanatusita |first2=Rajith |last2=Dissanayake |title=Udawattakele: 'A Sanctuary Destroyed From Within' |journal=Loris, Journal of the Wildlife and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka |volume=26 |issue=5 & 6 |date=2013 |page=44 |url=http://www.rainforestprotectors.org/rainforest/knowledgebank/Udawattakele%20A%20Sanctuary%20Destroyed%20From%20Within.pdf}}</ref>
In Hawaii, coffee cultivation became a major agricultural activity in the 19th century.<ref>{{Cite web |last=parrishkauaird |date=2023-10-25 |title=Coffee Culture in Kauai: A Rich History and Enduring Relevance |url=https://www.parrishkauai.com/103589/coffee-kauai/ |access-date=2026-04-03 |website=Kauai Vacation Rentals |language=en-US}}</ref>However, escaped plants have spread beyond plantations and established wild populations. These populations can alter native ecosystems by competing with local plant species.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-09-24 |title=The History Of Kona Coffee Beans in Hawaiʻi |url=https://www.honolulucoffee.com/blogs/news/history-of-kona-coffee-beans-in-hawaii |access-date=2026-03-29 |website=Honolulu Coffee |language=en}}</ref>
Coffee has been produced in Queensland and New South Wales of Australia, starting in the 1980s and 1990s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Coffee |url=https://agrifutures.com.au/farm-diversity/coffee/ |website=AgriFutures Australia |access-date=2 September 2022 |language=en-AU}}</ref> The Wet Tropics Management Authority has classified ''Coffea arabica'' as an environmental weed for southeast Queensland due to its invasiveness in non-agricultural areas.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Cripps |first1=Sally |title=Coffee eradication wins weed award |url=https://www.queenslandcountrylife.com.au/story/3362505/coffee-eradication-wins-weed-award/ |work=Queensland Country Life |date=21 September 2015 |language=en-AU}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Batianoff |first1=George N. |last2=Butler |first2=Don W. |title=Assessment of invasive naturalized plants in south-east Queensland |journal=Plant Protection Quarterly |date=2002 |volume=17 |issue=1 |pages=27–34 |url=https://caws.org.nz/PPQ1617/PPQ%2017-1%20pp027-34%20Batianoff.pdf}}</ref>
Coffee production in Australia remains relatively small but has expanded in subtropical regions. Environmental concerns have arisen due to its ability to spread into surrounding natural habitats.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Coffee |url=https://weeds.brisbane.qld.gov.au/weeds/coffee |access-date=2026-04-03 |website=Weed Identification – Brisbane City Council |language=en}}</ref> Management efforts focus on limiting its spread outside cultivated areas.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Coffee Research {{!}} Australia |url=https://worldcoffeeresearch.org/countries/australia |access-date=2026-03-29 |website=World Coffee Research |language=en-US}}</ref>
==History== {{Main|History of coffee}}
The first written record of coffee made from roasted coffee beans (botanical seeds) comes from Arab scholars, who wrote that it was useful in prolonging their working hours. The Arab innovation in Yemen of making a brew from roasted beans spread first among the Hijazis, Egyptians and Turks, and later found its way around the world.<!-- lots of stories needed: Gabriel d'Erchigny de Clieu, Lt. Colonel Francisco de Melo Palheta, Tunisian pirates, etc. --> Other scholars believe that the coffee plant was introduced from Yemen, based on a Yemeni tradition that slips of both coffee and ''qat'' were planted at ''Udein'' ('the two twigs') in Yemen in pre-Islamic times.<ref>''Western Arabia and the Red Sea'', Naval Intelligence Division, London 2005, p. 490 {{ISBN|0-7103-1034-X}}</ref> Arabica coffee production in Indonesia began in 1699 through the spread of Yemen's trade. Indonesian coffees, such as Sumatran and Java, are known for their heavy body and low acidity. These qualities make them ideal for blending with the higher acidity coffees from Central America and East Africa.<ref name="Martinez-Torres-2006" />
==Cultivation and use== thumb|right|Botanical drawing of ''Coffea arabica'', around 1860 thumb|right|Botanical drawing of ''C. arabica'', dating from around 1880
''Coffea arabica'' accounts for 60% of the world's coffee production.<ref name="CoffeeProduction" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Marchant |first=Andrew |date=February 4, 2023 |title=Intro to Arabica Coffee - Is 100% Arabica the Best Coffee? |url=https://makeespresso.co.uk/blog/introduction-to-arabica-coffee-is-100-arabica-the-best-coffee/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230301154523/https://makeespresso.co.uk/blog/introduction-to-arabica-coffee-is-100-arabica-the-best-coffee/ |archive-date=March 1, 2023 |access-date=March 1, 2023 |website=Make Espresso |language=en-GB}}</ref>
''C. arabica'' takes approximately seven years to mature fully, and it does best with {{convert|1.2|–|1.8|m|in}} of rain, evenly distributed throughout the year.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nigam |first=Poonam |date=1999-01-01 |title=Cocoa and Coffee Fermentations |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/chapter/referencework/abs/pii/B0122270703017955 |journal=Encyclopedia of Food Microbiology |language=en-US |pages=466–473 |doi=10.1006/rwfm.1999.1795 |isbn=978-0-12-227070-3 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Wagner |first1=Sigrun |last2=Jassogne |first2=Laurence |last3=Price |first3=Elizabeth |last4=Jones |first4=Martin |last5=Preziosi |first5=Richard |date=2021-01-11 |title=Impact of Climate Change on the Production of Coffea arabica at Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania |journal=Agriculture |language=en |volume=11 |issue=1 |page=53 |doi=10.3390/agriculture11010053 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2021Agric..11...53W |issn=2077-0472}}</ref> It is usually cultivated at an altitude between {{cvt|1,200|and|1,500|m|ft}},<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=B.k |first1=Kamal |last2=Acharya |first2=Bibek |last3=Srivastava |first3=Arvind |last4=Pandey |first4=Madhav |date=2021-06-08 |title=Effect of different Altitudes in Qualitative and Quantitative Attributes of Green Coffee Beans (Coffea arabica) in Nepal |url=https://aipublications.com/ijhaf/detail/effect-of-different-altitudes-in-qualitative-and-quantitative-attributes-of-green-coffee-beans-coffea-arabica-in-nepal/ |journal=International Journal of Horticulture, Agriculture and Food Science |language=en |volume=5 |issue=3 |pages=1–7 |doi=10.22161/ijhaf.5.3.1 |issn=2456-8635}}</ref> but there are plantations that grow it as low as sea level and as high as {{cvt|2,800|m}}.<ref name="Schmitt2006">{{cite book|first=Christine B.|last=Schmitt|title=Montane Rainforest with Wild Coffea Arabica in the Bonga Region (SW Ethiopia): Plant Diversity, Wild Coffee Management and Implications for Conservation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T7OxK6U9vu4C&pg=PA4|date=2006|publisher=Cuvillier Verlag|isbn=978-3-86727-043-4|page=4}}</ref>
The plant can tolerate low temperatures, but not frost, and it does best with an average temperature between {{convert|15|and|24|C|F}}.<ref name="Obso2006">{{cite book|author=Taye Kufa Obso|title=Ecophysiological Diversity of Wild Arabica Coffee Populations in Ethiopia: Growth, Water Relations and Hydraulic Characteristics Along a Climatic Gradient|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j9Uq-qY-NrkC&pg=PA10|date=2006|publisher=Cuvillier Verlag|isbn=978-3-86727-990-1|page=10}}</ref> Commercial cultivars mostly only grow to about 5 m, and are frequently trimmed as low as 2 m to facilitate harvesting. Unlike ''Coffea canephora'', ''C. arabica'' prefers to be grown in light shade.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Prado|first1=Sara Guiti|last2=Collazo|first2=Jaime A.|last3=Stevenson|first3=Philip C.|last4=Irwin|first4=Rebecca E.|date=2019-05-14|title=A comparison of coffee floral traits under two different agricultural practices|journal=Scientific Reports|language=en|volume=9|issue=1|page=7331|doi=10.1038/s41598-019-43753-y|pmid=31089179|pmc=6517588|issn=2045-2322|bibcode=2019NatSR...9.7331P}}</ref>
Three to four years after planting, ''C. arabica'' produces small, white, highly fragrant flowers. The sweet fragrance resembles the sweet smell of jasmine flowers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Coffea arabica (Arabian Coffee, Coffee, Coffee Plant) {{!}} North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox |url=https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/coffea-arabica/ |access-date=2026-03-05 |website=plants.ces.ncsu.edu}}</ref> Flowers opening on sunny days result in the greatest number of berries. This can be problematic and deleterious, however, as coffee plants tend to produce too many berries; this can lead to an inferior harvest and even damage yield in the following years, as the plant will favour the ripening of berries to the detriment of its vegetative growth.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Unigarro |first1=Carlos Andres |last2=Cayón Salinas |first2=Daniel Gerardo |last3=León-Burgos |first3=Andrés Felipe |last4=Flórez-Ramos |first4=Claudia Patricia |date=2025-11-06 |title=Flowering and Fruiting of Coffea arabica L.: A Comprehensive Perspective from Phenology |journal=Plants |language=en |volume=14 |issue=21 |page=3396 |doi=10.3390/plants14213396 |doi-access=free|issn=2223-7747 |pmc=12608170 |pmid=41225946 |bibcode=2025Plnts..14.3396U }}</ref>
On well-kept plantations, overflowering is prevented by pruning the tree. The flowers last only a few days, leaving behind only the thick, dark-green leaves. The berries then begin to appear.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Mohammed |first1=Taha |last2=Worku |first2=Mohammed |date=2025-08-27 |title=Pruning and fertilising effects on yield and yield components of arabica coffee in its centre of origin in southwest Ethiopia |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-agricultural-science/article/pruning-and-fertilising-effects-on-yield-and-yield-components-of-arabica-coffee-in-its-centre-of-origin-in-southwest-ethiopia/ADF6DF38A87F460AD1AC449A86725B76 |journal=The Journal of Agricultural Science |language=en |volume=163 |issue=5 |pages=493–502 |doi=10.1017/S002185962510021X |issn=0021-8596}}</ref> These are as dark green as the foliage until they begin to ripen, but as chlorophyll degrades and anthocyanins buildup, the plant becomes completely red or yellow depending on the variety of ''C. arabica''. At this point, they are called "cherries", which fruit they then resemble, and are ready for picking.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Unigarro |first1=Carlos Andres |last2=Cayón Salinas |first2=Daniel Gerardo |last3=León-Burgos |first3=Andrés Felipe |last4=Flórez-Ramos |first4=Claudia Patricia |date=2025-11-06 |title=Flowering and Fruiting of Coffea arabica L.: A Comprehensive Perspective from Phenology |journal=Plants |language=en |volume=14 |issue=21 |page=3396 |doi=10.3390/plants14213396 |doi-access=free|issn=2223-7747 |pmc=12608170 |pmid=41225946 |bibcode=2025Plnts..14.3396U }}</ref>
The berries are oblong and about 1 cm long. Inferior coffee results from picking them too early or too late, so many are picked by hand to be able to better select them, as they do not all ripen at the same time.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Link of the Month |url=https://www.valentine.gr/linkOfTheMonth-december2015.php#:~:text=inside%20the%20seed.-,C.,as%20high%20as%202,800%20m. |access-date=2026-04-03 |website=www.valentine.gr}}</ref> They are sometimes shaken off the tree onto mats, which means ripe and unripe berries are collected together.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Gutema |first1=T. |last2=Adicha |first2=A. |last3=Tadesse |first3=A. |date=2025-12-18 |title=Assessment of coffee post-harvest handling in major growing areas of Ari and South Omo zone, South Ethiopia |url=https://zenodo.org/records/17972908 |journal=Research in Agriculture & Life Sciences |doi=10.5281/zenodo.17972908 |via=InvenioRDM}}</ref>
The trees are difficult to cultivate and each tree can produce from {{convert|0.5|to|5.0|kg}} of dried beans, depending on the tree's individual character and the climate that season. The most valuable part of this cash crop is the beans inside. Each berry holds two locules containing the beans. The coffee beans are actually two seeds within the fruit; sometimes, a third seed or one seed, a peaberry, grows in the fruit at the tips of the branches. These seeds are covered in two membranes; the outer one is called the "parchment coat" and the inner one is called the "silver skin".<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bastian |first1=Februadi |last2=Hutabarat |first2=Olly Sanny |last3=Dirpan |first3=Andi |last4=Nainu |first4=Firzan |last5=Harapan |first5=Harapan |last6=Emran |first6=Talha Bin |last7=Simal-Gandara |first7=Jesus |date=2021-11-17 |title=From Plantation to Cup: Changes in Bioactive Compounds during Coffee Processing |journal=Foods |language=en |volume=10 |issue=11 |page=2827 |doi=10.3390/foods10112827 |doi-access=free|issn=2304-8158 |pmc=8620865 |pmid=34829108}}</ref>
On Java, trees are planted at all times of the year and are harvested year-round. In parts of Brazil, however, the trees have a season and are harvested only in winter. The plants are vulnerable to damage in such poor growing conditions as cold or low pH soil, and they are also more vulnerable to pests than the ''C. robusta'' plant.<ref>"Coffee: The World in Your Cup." Seattle, WA: Burke Museum at the University of Washington.</ref>
It is expected that a medium-term depletion of indigenous populations of ''C. arabica'' may occur, due to projected global warming, based on IPCC modelling.<ref>{{cite journal|first1=Aaron P.|last1=Davis|first2=Tadesse Woldemariam|last2=Gole|first3=Susana|last3=Baena|first4=Justin|last4=Moat|title=The impact of climate change on indigenous arabica coffee (Coffea arabica): Predicting future trends and identifying priorities|journal=PLOS ONE|volume=7|issue=11|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0047981|date=2012|article-number=e47981|pmid=23144840|pmc=3492365|bibcode=2012PLoSO...747981D|doi-access=free}}</ref> Climate change—rising temperatures, longer droughts, and excessive rainfall—appears to threaten the sustainability of arabica coffee production, leading to attempts to breed new cultivars for the changing conditions<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bunn |first1=Christian |last2=Läderach |first2=Peter |last3=Ovalle Rivera |first3=Oriana |last4=Kirschke |first4=Dieter |date=2015-03-01 |title=A bitter cup: climate change profile of global production of Arabica and Robusta coffee |journal=Climatic Change |language=en |volume=129 |issue=1 |pages=89–101 |doi=10.1007/s10584-014-1306-x |bibcode=2015ClCh..129...89B |issn=1573-1480}}</ref>.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=van der Vossen |first1=Herbert |first2=Benoît |last2=Bertrand |first3=André |last3=Charrier|date=2015|title=Next generation variety development for sustainable production of arabica coffee (''Coffea arabica'' L.): A review |journal=Euphytica|volume=204|issue=2|page=244|doi=10.1007/s10681-015-1398-z|bibcode=2015Euphy.204..243V |s2cid=17384126}}</ref>
{{anchor|100% Arabica}}Gourmet coffees are almost exclusively high-quality mild varieties of arabica coffee, and among the best known arabica coffee beans in the world are those from Jamaican Blue Mountain, Colombian Supremo, Tarrazú, Costa Rica, Guatemalan Antigua, and Ethiopian Sidamo.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://veja.abril.com.br/300708/p_140.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080805215109/http://veja.abril.com.br/300708/p_140.shtml |archive-date=5 August 2008 |title=Os melhores grãos do mundo |work=Revista Veja | publisher=Editora Abril|date=31 July 2008 |access-date=29 July 2008 |language=pt}} Edition 2071. Print edition p. 140</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/09/05/books/the-world-before-starbucks.html |title=The World Before Starbucks |first=Betty |last=Fussell |work=The New York Times |date=5 September 1999 |access-date=29 July 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/09/02/garden/americans-wake-up-and-smell-the-coffee.html |title=Americans Wake Up and Smell the Coffee |first=Florence |last=Fabricant |work=The New York Times |date=2 September 1992 |access-date=29 July 2008}}</ref>
Blends consisting only of Arabica are often labelled "100% Arabica" as a sign of quality. In 2023, several large coffee roasters<!-- (including Melitta BellaCrema, Norma CaffeCiao) --> dropped the "100% Arabica" declaration previously residing on some of their packages and started to blend less expensive Robusta coffee into the mix. To avoid making larger changes to the visual design of the package the Arabica label was replaced by other labeling, keeping the previous ornamental design, thereby presenting a case of shrinkflation. In some case, the coffee is still advertised as "100% Arabica" in flyers in 2024, but is no longer declared so on the actual package. {{Wide image|Coffee Plantation.jpg|800px|A ''Coffea arabica'' plantation in São João do Manhuaçu, Minas Gerais, Brazil|80%}}
==Strains== [[File:Coffee Bean Structure.svg|thumb|Structure of coffee berry and beans:<br />1: Center cut<br />2: Bean (endosperm)<br />3: Silver skin (testa, epidermis)<br />4: Parchment coat (hull, endocarp)<br />5: Pectin layer<br />6: Pulp (mesocarp)<br />7: Outer skin (pericarp, exocarp)]] One strain of ''Coffea arabica'' (called AC1, AC2 and AC3 in honour of the geneticist Alcides Carvalho) naturally contains very little caffeine. While beans of normal ''C. arabica'' plants contain 12 mg of caffeine per gram of dry mass, these mutants contain only 0.76 mg of caffeine per gram, with similar expected cup quality.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Maria B. |last1=Silvarolla |first2=Paulo |last2=Mazzafera |first3=Luiz C. |last3=Fazuoli |title=Plant biochemistry: A naturally decaffeinated arabica coffee |journal=Nature |volume=429 |issue=6994 |page=826 |date=2004 |doi=10.1038/429826a |pmid=15215853|bibcode=2004Natur.429..826S |s2cid=4428420 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
== Threats == Although it has a huge wild population of 13.5 to 19.5 billion individuals throughout its native range, ''C. arabica'' is still considered endangered on the IUCN Red List due to numerous threats it faces.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kew scientists reveal that 60% of wild coffee species are threatened with extinction, causing concern for the future of coffee production {{!}} Kew |url=https://www.kew.org/about-us/press-media/kew-scientists-reveal-that-60-of-wild-coffee#:~:text=The%20newly%20published%20research%20reveals,due%20to%20climate%20change%20projections. |access-date=2026-04-03 |website=www.kew.org |language=en}}</ref>Due to being an understory plant, it requires standing forest, making it highly susceptible to the historically significant deforestation levels in Ethiopia; prior to major deforestation, forest cover was thought to be between 25–31% of Ethiopia's total land surface, but has dropped to just 4%, and deforestation still continues.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Masha |first1=Mamush |last2=Bojago |first2=Elias |last3=Belayneh |first3=Mengie |last4=Tadila |first4=Gemechu |last5=Abera |first5=Alemayehu |date=2024-12-01 |title=Quantifying forest degradation rates and their drivers in Alle district, southwestern Ethiopia: Implications for sustainable forest management practices |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1195103624000090 |journal=Geomatica |volume=76 |issue=2 |article-number=100009 |doi=10.1016/j.geomat.2024.100009 |issn=1195-1036}}</ref> In addition, climate change may have a major effect on growing areas for wild ''C. arabica'' in Ethiopia due to its high-temperature sensitivity, and estimates indicate that population could reduce by 50–80% with a 40–50% reduction in area of occupancy by 2088<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Moat |first1=Justin |last2=Gole |first2=Tadesse W. |last3=Davis |first3=Aaron P. |date=February 2019 |title=Least concern to endangered: Applying climate change projections profoundly influences the extinction risk assessment for wild Arabica coffee |journal=Global Change Biology |language=en |volume=25 |issue=2 |pages=390–403 |doi=10.1111/gcb.14341 |pmid=30650240 |pmc=6900256 |bibcode=2019GCBio..25..390M |issn=1354-1013}}</ref>; climate change can also impact reproductive success. In addition, the main pest of coffee, the coffee berry borer (''Hypothenemus hampei'') may benefit from climate change<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Jaramillo |first1=Juliana |last2=Muchugu |first2=Eric |last3=Vega |first3=Fernando E. |last4=Davis |first4=Aaron |last5=Borgemeister |first5=Christian |last6=Chabi-Olaye |first6=Adenirin |date=2011-09-14 |title=Some Like It Hot: The Influence and Implications of Climate Change on Coffee Berry Borer (Hypothenemus hampei) and Coffee Production in East Africa |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=6 |issue=9 |article-number=e24528 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0024528 |doi-access=free|issn=1932-6203 |pmc=3173381 |pmid=21935419 |bibcode=2011PLoSO...624528J }}</ref> and colonize higher altitudes that were formerly too cold for it, which can also affect coffee populations.<ref name="IUCN">{{cite iucn |author1=Moat, J. |author2=O'Sullivan, R. J. |author3=Gole, T. |author4=Davis, A. P. |date=2020 |title=Coffea arabica |volume=2020 |article-number=e.T18289789A174149937 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T18289789A174149937.en}}</ref>
Additionally, coffee leaf rust caused by the fungus ''Hemileia vastatrix'' is a major threat to the supply of ''Coffea arabica'' causing losses of up to $2 billion US dollars annually.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Talhinhas |first1=Pedro |last2=Batista |first2=Dora |last3=Diniz |first3=Inês |last4=Vieira |first4=Ana |last5=Silva |first5=Diogo N. |last6=Loureiro |first6=Andreia |last7=Tavares |first7=Sílvia |last8=Pereira |first8=Ana Paula |last9=Azinheira |first9=Helena G. |last10=Guerra-Guimarães |first10=Leonor |last11=Várzea |first11=Vítor |last12=Silva |first12=Maria do Céu |date=2016-06-24 |title=The coffee leaf rust pathogen Hemileia vastatrix: one and a half centuries around the tropics |journal=Molecular Plant Pathology |language=en |volume=18 |issue=8 |pages=1039–1051 |doi=10.1111/mpp.12512 |issn=1464-6722 |pmc=6638270 |pmid=27885775}}</ref> From 2012 to 2013 ''Hemileia vastatrix'' was responsible for a 16% decrease in production of ''Coffea arabica'' across Central America. The fungus destroys the plant by causing rapid defoliation, which hinders the plant from performing photosynthesis.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Boudrot |first1=Audrey |last2=Pico |first2=Jimmy |last3=Merle |first3=Isabelle |last4=Granados |first4=Eduardo |last5=Vílchez |first5=Sergio |last6=Tixier |first6=Philippe |last7=Filho |first7=Elías de Melo Virginio |last8=Casanoves |first8=Fernando |last9=Tapia |first9=Ana |last10=Allinne |first10=Clémentine |last11=Rice |first11=Robert A. |last12=Avelino |first12=Jacques |date=2016-04-04 |title=Shade Effects on the Dispersal of Airborne Hemileia vastatrix Uredospores |url=https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/PHYTO-02-15-0058-R |journal=Phytopathology |volume=106 |issue=6 |pages=572–580 |doi=10.1094/PHYTO-02-15-0058-R |pmid=26828230 |bibcode=2016PhPat.106..572B |issn=0031-949X}}</ref>
The conservation of the genetic variation of ''C. arabica'' relies on conserving healthy populations of wild coffee in the Afromontane rainforests of Yemen. Genetic research has shown coffee cultivation is threatening the genetic integrity of wild coffee because it exposes wild genotypes to cultivars<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Anthony |first1=F. |last2=Combes |first2=M. |last3=Astorga |first3=C. |last4=Bertrand |first4=B. |last5=Graziosi |first5=G. |last6=Lashermes |first6=P. |date=April 2002 |title=The origin of cultivated Coffea arabica L. varieties revealed by AFLP and SSR markers |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00122-001-0798-8 |journal=Theoretical and Applied Genetics |language=en |volume=104 |issue=5 |pages=894–900 |doi=10.1007/s00122-001-0798-8 |pmid=12582651 |issn=0040-5752}}</ref>.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Silvarolla |first1=M. B. |last2=Mazzafera |first2=P. |last3=Fazuoli |first3=L. C. |date=2004 |title=Plant biochemistry: A naturally decaffeinated arabica coffee |journal=Nature |volume=429 |issue=6994 |page=826 |bibcode=2004Natur.429..826S |doi=10.1038/429826a |pmid=15215853 |doi-access=free |s2cid=4428420}}</ref> Nearly all of the coffee that has been cultivated over the past few centuries originated from just a handful of wild plants from Yemen, and the coffee growing on plantations around the world contains less than 1% of the diversity in the wilds of Yemen alone.<ref name="Saving Coffee">{{cite journal |last1=Rosner |first1=Hillar y|date=October 2014 |title=Saving Coffee |journal=Scientific American |volume=311 |issue=4 |pages=68–73 |bibcode=2014SciAm.311d..68R |doi=10.1038/scientificamerican1014-68 |pmid=25314878}}<!--|access-date=28 October 2014--></ref>
Climate change also serves as a threat to cultivated ''C. arabica'' due to their temperature sensitivity, and some studies estimate that by 2050, over half of the land used for cultivating coffee could be unproductive. The more heat-tolerant ''Coffea stenophylla'' may replace ''C. arabica'' as the dominant coffee species in cultivation in order to guard against this.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2021-04-19 |title=Climate change: Future-proofing coffee in a warming world |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-56804147 |access-date=2021-04-24}}</ref>
==Gallery== <gallery widths="190px" heights="180px"> File:Coffee germination.jpg|Coffee germinating File:Starr 070617-7322 Coffea arabica.jpg|''Coffea arabica'' growing at Olinda, Maui File:Coffee arabica flower.jpg|Coffee flowers File:Coffee arabica cherry.jpg|Fresh coffee fruits File:Open coffee cherry.jpg|Fresh coffee seeds ("beans") File:Fermented coffee beans.jpg|Fermented coffee seeds File:Green arabica coffee beans.jpg|Fermented coffee (green) seeds without hulls File:Roasted arabica coffee beans Minca.jpg|Fermented and roasted coffee seeds File:Unroasted coffee.jpg|Unroasted ("green") coffee (''Coffea arabica'') seeds from Brazil </gallery>
==See also== * Kahweol * Maraba coffee * National symbols of Yemen {{portal-inline|Coffee}}
==References== {{Reflist|30em}}
<ref>{{Cite web |title=Caffe arabica |url=http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/fas/tropprod//2010s/2017/tropprod-06-16-2017.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208175005/http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/fas/tropprod//2010s/2017/tropprod-06-16-2017.pdf |archive-date=2017-12-08 |access-date=2026-04-03 |website=usda.mannlib.cornell.edu}}</ref> ==Further reading== *{{cite journal |last1=Silvarolla |first1=Maria B. |last2=Mazzafera |first2=Paulo |last3=Fazuoli |first3=Luiz C. |date=2004 |title=A naturally decaffeinated arabica coffee |journal=Nature |volume=429 |issue=6994 |page=826 |doi=10.1038/429826a |pmid=15215853 |bibcode=2004Natur.429..826S |s2cid=4428420 |doi-access=free}} *{{cite book |title=The World of Caffeine: The Science and Culture of the World's Most Popular Drug |url=https://archive.org/details/worldofcaffeines00benn |url-access=registration |last1=Weinberg |first1=Bennet Alan |last2=Bealer |first2=Bonnie K. |date=2001 |publisher=Routledge |location=New York |isbn=978-0-415-92722-2}}
==External links== {{Commons category|position=left}} * [http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/rubiaceae/ World Checklist of Rubiaceae] * [https://www.coffeeb.net/arabica-vs-robusta/ Understanding the difference between Arabica and Robusta] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820053209/https://www.coffeeb.net/arabica-vs-robusta/ |date=20 August 2016}} * [http://www.coffeeresearch.org/agriculture/coffeeplant.htm CoffeeResearch.org]
{{Coffee|nocat=1}} {{Sister bar|d=Q47685|c=Coffea arabica|species=Coffea arabica|auto=1}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q47685}} {{Authority control}}
arabica Category:Flora of East Tropical Africa Category:Flora of Northeast Tropical Africa Category:Endemic flora of Ethiopia Category:Flora of Kenya Category:Flora of Sudan Category:Crops originating from Africa Category:Crops originating from Ethiopia Category:Agriculture in Brazil Category:Agriculture in the Caribbean Category:Agriculture in China Category:Agriculture in Central America Category:Agriculture in Mexico Category:Agriculture in South America Category:Bale Mountains Category:Ethiopian Highlands Category:Plants described in 1753 Category:Botanical taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Category:National symbols of Yemen