Coffee harvest calendar by country

How to read the calendar

• The months are when coffee is picked, not when it ships. Parchment still has to dry, rest and be milled, graded and sampled, so green coffee is usually offered some weeks after picking.
• Some origins have two crops a year. Colombia has a main crop (October to December) and a smaller fly crop, the mitaca (April to June); Kenya has a main crop (October to December) and an early crop (April to July).
• Altitude shifts the timing inside one country. In Costa Rica the harvest starts around August at lower altitudes in the south and can run to May on the highest farms.
• Weather moves the dates every year. Ask the seller for the crop year and the date the lot was milled.

Harvest season

Origin	Harvest season
Brazil	Arabica: May – September Robusta (conilon): from April
Burundi	Main crop: March – July
Colombia	Main crop: October – December Fly crop (mitaca): April – June
Costa Rica	Main crop: November – February Starts around August at lower altitudes in the south and can run to May on the highest farms.
El Salvador	Main crop: October – March
Ethiopia	Main crop: October – January
Guatemala	Main crop: October – April (peak December – March)
Honduras	Main crop: October – April
India	Arabica: November – January Robusta: December – February
Indonesia	Robusta, southern Sumatra: April – July (peak June – July) Arabica, first harvest: April – May Arabica, second harvest: from September
Kenya	Main crop: October – December Early crop (fly crop): April – July
Mexico	Main crop: November – March
Nicaragua	Main crop: October – March (peak November – February)
Papua New Guinea	Main crop: April – September (peak June – August)
Peru	Main crop: April – September (peak June – July)
Rwanda	Main crop: March – July
Tanzania	Arabica, north and south: July – December West: May – October
Uganda	Robusta, Masaka and west: May – August Robusta, central and east: November – February Arabica, west: April – June Arabica, east and north: October – February
Vietnam	Robusta: October – January (peak November – December)
Yemen	Main crop: October – February

Mid-year and year-end origins

Read across the table and two broad groups appear. Mid-year origins pick roughly between March and October: Brazil (arabica from May to September), Peru, Rwanda, Burundi, Papua New Guinea, western Tanzania, and robusta in Masaka and western Uganda. Year-end origins pick roughly between October and April: Colombia's and Kenya's main crops, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Mexico, India, Yemen and the Central American countries, from Guatemala and Honduras to Costa Rica. Some countries, such as Uganda, Tanzania and Indonesia, have harvests in both halves of the year, depending on region and species.

For a roaster this means fresh coffee can be bought all year by rotating origins. For a seller, it shows which origins your lots compete with when they reach the market.

Using the calendar when you buy

If you want fresh crop, ask for offer samples as soon as an origin's harvest is milled, approve a pre-shipment sample, and agree the shipment period in the contract (the ITC Coffee Guide defines "prompt" shipment as within 30 days). You can also fix the price before the harvest is ready, as a differential to the futures market. Our guides on buying direct and how prices work explain both.

Each country in the table links to its origin page, with main varieties, live lots, weather and official channels of the national coffee body. Sellers: list your lot as soon as the harvest is in, with the crop year in the description, so buyers can plan.