Did you know?

Ever since the discovery of the magic beans that keep people awake, the popular beverage has become an integral part of our modern day lifestyle.

Here are some fun facts about coffee that may just surprise you:

Coffee is the most popular beverage worldwide with over 500 billion cups consumed each year.
All coffee is grown within 1 000 miles of the equator, from the Tropic of Cancer in the north, to the Tropic of Capricorn in the south.
Coffee is second only to oil in world trade, with more than 25 million people employed in the industry.
The word ‘tip’ is also related to coffee. It comes from old London coffeehouses where the waiters’ brass boxes were etched with the inscription “To Insure Promptness”.
Among all of the major agricultural products of the world, coffee harvesting remains virtually untouched by mechanisation.
The Americas produce approximately 2/3 of the world's coffee supply.
The two main suppliers of coffee in the world are Brazil and Colombia, with Brazil contributing around 30% of the total.
Over five million people are employed in Brazil by the coffee trade. Most of those are involved with the cultivation and harvesting of over 3 billion coffee plants.
The coffee tree produces its first full crop when it is about five years old. Thereafter it produces consistently for 15 to 20 years.
From the mid 1800s up until the 1970s, over 50% of Brazil's foreign trade income came from growing coffee beans.
The Arabica is the original coffee plant. It still grows wild in Ethiopia.
There are three main commercial types of coffee bean: Arabica, Robusta and Liberica.
Robusta and Liberica coffee grows best at lower altitudes, whereas Arabica is better suited to higher altitudes.
Coffee berries do not ripen uniformly. The same branch may display ripe red berries, unripe green berries and overripe black berries. Conscientious growers select only the ripe berries.
It takes about 2 000 hand-picked Arabica coffee cherries to make a roasted pound of coffee. With 2 beans per cherry, it means around 4 000 beans are in a single pound of coffee.
A mature coffee tree will produce one pound of coffee per growing season.
German immigrants in Guatemala developed a cultivation process to use in extreme weather conditions. They burn rubbish near the plantations in severe weather and the dense smoke protects the trees from frost and produces a smoky flavour in the beans.
Hawaii is the only state of the United States in which coffee is commercially grown.
Hawaii features an annual Kona Festival - a coffee picking contest. Each year the winner becomes a state celebrity.
2001/2002 world-wide coffee crop production estimates are for some 114.4 million bags and Brazil should take a 24% share, making it the major producer and major exporter (with more than 21% of international trade and an income of 2 billion dollars).
The principal consumer of Brazilian coffee is Germany, followed by the United States, Italy, and Japan. These four alone account for more than half of total exports.
The major producer of soluble coffee in the world is the United States with 30%, followed by Brazil with 20%. But Brazil is the only large producer directed to the foreign market and is responsible for 60% of the soluble coffee sold internationally.
In the soluble coffee segment, Russia is the major consumer of Brazilian coffee, followed by the United States, Japan and Germany. These four major importers consume more than half of the coffee exports.
The world can be divided into nations of coffee drinkers and nations of tea drinkers.
The Europeans first added chocolate to their coffee in the 1600’s.
Our sense of smell, more than any of our other senses, makes our final judgment on coffee.
Italy currently has over 200 000 coffee bars, and still growing.
Raw coffee beans, soaked in water and spices, are chewed like candy in many parts of Africa.
In the last three centuries, 90% of all people living in the Western world have switched from tea to coffee.
In the ancient Arab world, coffee became such a staple in family life that one of the causes allowed by law for marital separation was a husband's refusal to produce coffee for his wife.
In Greece and Turkey, the oldest person is generally served their coffee first.
The first commercial espresso machine was manufactured in Italy in 1906.
The Civil War in the United States elevated the popularity of coffee to new heights. Soldiers went to war with coffee beans as a primary ration.
Bach wrote a coffee cantata in 1732.
Milk as an additive to coffee became popular in the 1680's, when a French physician recommended that café au lait be used for medicinal purposes.
Iced coffee in a can has been popular in Japan since 1945.
Irish Cream and Hazelnut are the most popular whole bean coffee flavourings.
Studies tell us the human body will absorb only 300 milligrams of caffeine at a given time. Additional amounts are cast off and will provide no additional stimulation. The human body dissipates 20% of the caffeine in the system each hour.