By Luna Sun

Copyright scmp

Long known as China’s coffee capital, the southwestern province of Yunnan is moving higher up the global value chain as rising international prices and overseas demand fuel an export boom.
The value of outbound shipments of coffee and derivative products from Yunnan hit 7.7 billion yuan (US$1.1 billion) in the first eight months of 2025, the highest of any region, with beans shipped to more than 30 countries including Germany and Vietnam.
Overseas orders are also driving industrial reforms, with factories upgrading their equipment and technology to meet changing consumer needs.
With 1.2 million mu (197,684 acres) of land for cultivation, Yunnan produces nearly all of China’s coffee. In recent years, reduced harvests in major producers such as Brazil have sent international coffee futures skyrocketing.
Benchmark coffee futures reached a 50-year high this year, pushing Yunnan’s raw bean prices from 40 yuan (US$5.6) per kilogram late last year to as high as 66 yuan in May – a windfall that has lifted both volumes and margins for local growers.
Yunnan exported 32,500 tons of coffee in 2024, up 358 per cent year-on-year, according to the customs office in the provincial capital of Kunming.

The province’s growing share of the world’s coffee supply could prove even more lucrative in the coming years.
According to research by Market Monitor, a consulting group in Hunan province, the global market was valued at 840.2 billion yuan in 2024 and is projected to reach 1.1 trillion yuan by 2030, reflecting a compound annual growth rate of nearly 5 per cent.
This demand, state broadcaster CCTV reported, is driving farmers to raise their quality standards.
For example, Korean buyers require roasted beans to have a finished yield above 96 per cent and a defect rate below 5 per cent.
To meet these exacting requirements, producers in Yunnan now put their beans through three rounds of inspection: once before storage, once during processing and once before shipment.
Even before this year’s harvest began, CCTV said, many overseas buyers placed advance orders, underscoring the need for China’s growers to align with the expectations of a diverse group of markets.
Beijing is also increasing its cross-border partnerships in the field. At the inaugural China-Vietnam Coffee Festival in Yunnan held this month, companies from both countries launched the China-Vietnam Coffee Trade Alliance to deepen the integration of their supply chains.