NICARAGUA

Nicaragua is located in the northern hemisphere, between the equator and the Tropic of Cancer, the territory of Nicaragua has a surface area of 130,370 km² and is inhabited by 6.55 million people. Nicaraguan topography is diverse and allows coffee to be grown at high altitudes, the volcanic soil is especially conducive to the growth of coffee seeds that need minerals and nutrition for optimal growth. 

Nicaragua has five main ecosystems: the lava flows of its volcanoes, the crater lakes, the Cocibolca and Xolotlán lakes, the island of Ometepe and the bamboo forests of the Caribbean coast. Nicaragua has 10% of the world’s biodiversity, which makes its land suitable for growing green coffee. The soils where coffee is grown in Nicaragua are soils rich in minerals, of volcanic origin, and are found in the country’sañosterrain, which makes it difficult for coffee growers to transport the harvest to the mills or the market. 

In Nicaragua there are four types of climates, the tropical climate of the savannah, the dry subtropical climate, the monsoon climate of the savannah and the tropical climate of the rainforest, the tropical climates and their derivatives being optimal for the development of coffee plants. Rainfall can occur in any month of the year, but the greatest amount of water falls between the months of May and November. The Government prohibits the cultivation of robusta coffee and determines in which regions and in what quantities this species can be cultivated. At the moment, robusta coffee is only allowed in some departments of the Pacific region and in some regions of the North and South Caribbean (except in Waslala). In total, there are some 140,000 hectares dedicated to coffee cultivation in the country, employing 500,000 people, with coffee production being smallholder, with thousands of families dedicated to and dependent on its cultivation. Although Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in the western hemisphere, it is making progress in terms of social welfare, coffee production is considered an engine of development for the rural sector.