Buying coffee from Costa Rica: micro-mills, honey process and SHB

Costa Rica coffee in numbers

The USDA forecast Costa Rica's 2026/27 production at about 1.2 million 60 kg bags, up from about 1.16 million in 2025/26, and exports at about 1.06 million bags. The United States took 39.6% of green coffee exports in 2024/25, and the EU was the other main market. About 24,650 growers farmed coffee in 2024/25, almost half as many as ten years earlier, on about 83,000 planted hectares.

Regions and harvest

Main regions include Tarrazú, West Valley, Central Valley, Tres Ríos and Brunca, plus three smaller ones. The main harvest runs from about November to February; it can start in August on low farms in the south and run to May on the highest farms. See the Costa Rica lots page.

Grades and processing

Export coffee is sold by altitude grade. Strictly Hard Bean (SHB) coffee is grown at roughly 1,200 metres and above and gives more acidity and sweetness. More than 150 micro-mills have opened since 2000, letting farms process and sell their own lots. They made the honey process famous: cherries are pulped and dried with some of the sticky mucilage left on. Read processing methods and the grading guide.

ICAFE and the rules

• ICAFE, founded in 1933, works on agronomy, marketing and legislation, and requires transactions between mills and producers to be recorded with the institute.
• ICAFE says the strong colón has cut grower revenue by nearly 30% since 2021/22, which pushes prices up.
• The sector is strengthening traceability for the EU Deforestation Regulation; see the EUDR guide.

Buying tips

• Ask for the farm or micro-mill, altitude, variety and process, and judge lots on a pre-shipment sample and cupping score.
• Costa Rican coffee usually ships in 69 kg bags. See shipping green coffee.
• Book micro-lots early in the season: volumes per farm are small.