Yunnan, China’s coffee capital, grinds out exports to meet global demand
The southwestern province is logging massive coffee exports in 2025 as bean prices go up and orders come in from more than 30 countries
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.
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.
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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.