| Coffees history goes back at least as far back as the fifteenth century,
although coffee's true origins remain unclear. It was originally believed, however,
that Ethiopian ancestors of the current Oromo people were the first to discover
the stimulating effects of this magical bean. However, there is no direct evidence
indicating where in Africa the coffee bean plant grew or who among the natives
might have known about it or used it as a stimulant prior to the seventeenth century.
From Ethiopia, coffee is supposed to have spread to Yemen and Egypt. The oldest
credible evidence of either coffee knowledge of the coffee tree or coffee consumption
appears in monasteries of Yemen sometime during the fifteenth century. Coffee
beans were brewed and roasted first in Arabia, similar to the way it is currently
prepared. By the sixteenth century, it had reached the rest of the Middle East,
including northern Africa, Turkey, and Persia. Coffee then quickly spread to the
rest of Europe, Italy, Indonesia, and the Americas.
The coffee berries contain the coffee bean and are produced by many small
species of the evergreen bush of the genus Coffea. The two that are the most commonly
grown are Coffea Arabica and Coffea canephora. Both are primarily cultivated in
Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Once they are ripe, the coffee berries
are dried after being picked and processed. Next, the seeds are roasted to various
degrees, depending on the flavor desired. They are then ground and brewed to create
coffee. Coffee can be prepared and presented in a variety of ways.
Coffee beans grow on trees in no less than seventy countries. Green coffee is probably the most traded agricultural commodity worldwide. As a result of its caffeine, coffee can have an energizing effect in humans. Coffee today is one of the most popular beverages worldwide.
Coffee has played an important role in numerous societies throughout history. In Yemen and Africa, it has been used in religious ceremonies. As a consequence, the Ethiopian Church refused to allow secular consumption of coffee until the reign of Ethiopian Emperor Menelik II. It was also banned for political reasons in Ottoman Turkey during the seventeenth century, and has been associated with rebellious political activities in Europe.
Coffee was the world's seventh largest legal agricultural commodity exported by value and was the top agricultural export commodity for twelve countries in 2004 and 2005. Some controversy has been linked to the cultivation of coffee over the years and the impact it may be having on the environment. Numerous studies have examined the possible relationship between the consumption of coffee and certain medical conditions. Whether the overall effects of coffee are ultimately negative or positive has always been widely disputed. However, coffee brewing methods have been found to be important. |
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