Farmers showcase newly picked coffee berries in Pu'er, Southwest China's Yunnan Province, on December 2, 2024. Photo: VCG
In a store in Lublin, an eastern Polish city, the Global Times spotted several bags of coffee labeled "from South China's Yunnan Province" - a surprising sight. "Vietnamese coffee beans likely have higher recognition in Poland," Bi Da, a Warsaw-based Polish tour guide who preferred to go by the Chinese name, told the Global Times. "It's clear Yunnan coffee has its own distinctive flavor," Bi said.
The presence of Yunnan coffee in Lublin is a vivid illustration of its growing international popularity. Yunnan exported 32, 500 tons of coffee in 2024, marking a year-on-year surge of 358 percent. The major destinations include 29 countries and regions, such as the Netherlands, Germany, the US, and Vietnam, according to Kunming Customs.
Alicia Feng has been serving Chinese specialty coffee at Calere, her shop in Melbourne, Australia since it opened in 2019. The first question her new customers often ask is, "There's coffee from China?" But Feng's regular customers - most of whom once asked that same question - now ask to try new crops as soon as they arrive, local magazine Broadsheet reported in February 2025.
Global appearance
The Global Times learned that Yunnan coffee's expanding global footprint stems largely from continuous improvements in its quality.
"In recent years, Yunnan coffee has entered more overseas markets primarily because it has emerged as a new specialty coffee origin on the international stage. As its quality advances, global buyers are increasingly willing to explore Yunnan coffee," Tao Jian, founder of coffinance.com, told the Global Times.
Yunnan coffee is now served in specialty cafés across urban Spain, with its quality gaining recognition from local businesses and consumers. Industry insiders familiar with both domestic and international coffee markets told the Global Times that while Yunnan-grown coffee once struggled with inconsistent quality - often relegated to instant coffee production - its current specialty coffee is now sourced by foreign cafés. Moreover, brands like Nestlé and Starbucks have developed product lines specifically labeled as "Yunnan coffee."
Yunnan has designated 1.05 million
mu (about 70,000 hectares) of land as optimal growing zones for specialty coffee, promoting the cultivation of premium varieties such as Geisha and Typica. The specialty coffee ratio in Yunnan has risen from 8 percent in 2021 to 31.6 percent by 2024, while the deep-processing rate for coffee beans has surged from 20 percent in 2021 to 80 percent in 2024, according to a report on people.com.cn on Saturday.
With China's technological advancements in coffee cultivation and processing techniques in recent years, Yunnan coffee has gained significant international recognition and earned acclaim from renowned enterprises and experienced coffee enthusiasts, Li Xuejun, deputy dean of the College of Tropical Crops at Yunnan Agricultural University, told the Global Times.
"Thanks to its distinctive flavor profile, Yunnan coffee has now joined the ranks of high-quality coffees and is cherished by global com
munities dedicated to pursuing exceptional coffee experiences," Li said.
Speaking on the consumption advantages of Yunnan coffee, a local merchant surnamed Guo told the Global Times that it lies in the fact that there is such a huge consumer base in China and the growth trend of coffee consumption. "In fact, this trend is also the future of Chinese coffee. There is no such a large incremental coffee market in the world," Guo said.
Nature's brew
The history of coffee cultivation in Yunnan dates back 130 years. Yunnan's coffee-growing regions now span six prefectures and cities, including Pu'er, Baoshan, Lincang, Dehong, Xishuangbanna, and Nujiang. By 2024, the province's coffee plantations covered 1.267 million
mu, yielding an annual output of 146,000 tons - both accounting for over 98 percent of China's total coffee cultivation area and production, according to a report on CCTV.com.
"Thanks to the natural conditions of low latitude and high altitude, high-quality small-grain seeds, and advanced cultivation techniques, Yunnan coffee has achieved exceptional quality," Huang Jiaxiong, chief scientist of the Specialty Coffee Society of Yunnan, told the Global Times.
Beyond natural advantages, technological advancements have further propelled progress.
For instance, the adoption of various technologies has ensured consistency in coffee quality, while targeted fermentation techniques have improved product standard stability. Enterprises' exploration and innovation have also diversified the flavor profiles of Yunnan coffee, Li said.
Crucially, strong policy support has also driven up Yunnan Coffee's sustained growth. "In the past decade, Yunnan officials, enterprises and related parties on the industrial chain made concentrated efforts to develop the coffee industry, which has yielded some achievements to date," Hu Lu, deputy secretary of the Coffee Association of Yunnan, told the Global Times.
Yunnan is also ramping up efforts to train coffee professionals across the entire industry chain. In 2024, Yunnan Agricultural University launched China's first undergraduate program in coffee science and engineering. According to Li, the program offers a comprehensive pathway, covering everything from breeding and processing to operations and marketing.
Looking ahead, industry insiders emphasized the importance of building a strong brand identity for Yunnan coffee.
"Yunnan coffee still lacks a distinct brand identity. Yunnan could follow the example of some coffee-producing countries of Central American producers of traditional washed Arabica coffee by developing a unified brand, logo, and slogan," Tao said.
Huang said that in addition to continuing innovation, efforts are also needed to promote Yunnan coffee both in China and abroad, with a focus on promoting "coffee and health" and driving consumption through brand-building and marketing campaigns.
Feng Fan and Ma Jingjing also contributed to this report.
