Martinique Coffee: History, Decline and Rebirth of an Exceptional Terroir

A providential arrival on the island

The history of coffee in Martinique begins in 1723, when naval officer Gabriel De Clieu brought the first three coffee plants to the island. This arrival came at exactly the right moment: at the same time, cacao trees, then the main export crop of northern Martinique since the late 17th century, were struck by a serious disease that caused production to collapse. Residents of the Trinité, Capesterre and Nord-Caraïbe districts turned massively to coffee growing, which became their fallback crop until the early 19th century.

Coffee quickly took root across much of the territory. At La Caravelle, for example, the Dubuc family, who gave their name to the famous ruined château that can still be visited today, grew sugar cane, tobacco and coffee from the late 17th century onward. In Anses-d’Arlet, full-sun coffee cultivation on Morne Champagne made the commune’s reputation from the early 18th century.

The golden age of Martinican coffee

By the end of the 18th century, coffee reached its peak: around 6,000 hectares of the island were devoted to it. It became a genuine cash crop alongside sugar, cotton and food crops, grown by numerous planter families known as “sucriers et cafiers” (sugar and coffee planters). A second boom came at the end of the 19th century: during the sugar crisis of 1883, which lasted until 1904, some planters abandoned cane to return to so-called secondary crops, cacao and coffee foremost among them, whose exports doubled between 1890 and 1900.

Decline in the face of sugar cane and bananas

This prosperity did not last, however. Successive plant diseases, the human hardships tied to the plantation economy, and above all competition from more profitable crops, first sugar cane then bananas, gradually caused Martinican coffee production to collapse. Coffee, once found across the hills of both the North and South of the island, became a marginal, almost forgotten crop during the 20th century.

The rebirth of legendary coffee: Arabica Typica

It was not until the 2010s that this agricultural heritage was revived. The Region of Martinique, since renamed the Collectivité Territoriale de Martinique (CTM), decided to relaunch coffee growing using the historic variety introduced in the 18th century: Arabica Typica. Between 2010 and 2015, agronomist Frédérique Descroix carried out research at the CIRAD laboratory on more than 400 leaf samples collected across the island. Only three Arabica Typica plants, direct descendants of those introduced by Gabriel De Clieu, were identified: a variety of exceptional rarity.

From 2015, the Regional Nature Park of Martinique (PNRM) has led an operational programme on behalf of the CTM to relaunch this crop, with the aim of turning it into a genuine premium product. Between 2015 and 2017, more than 10,000 plants were entrusted to farmers in the communes of Morne-Vert, Fonds-Saint-Denis and Bellefontaine. This first phase confirmed that Arabica Typica finds its ideal conditions above 1,000 metres of altitude, making the slopes of Mount Pelée particularly well suited to its cultivation.

The first experimental harvests, in 2019, revealed a coffee with a strikingly fruity taste and a remarkable aroma, praised by everyone who was able to taste it. The sector then aimed for around twenty hectares under cultivation, with American and Japanese buyers already committed to purchase prices exceeding €30/kg, proof of the potential of this niche, very high value-added coffee.

Legendary coffee now recognised internationally

Since 2021, Martinique, the only French territory that produces coffee, has become the official destination of the Transat Jacques Vabre, the “Coffee Route”. Each edition, the PNRM showcases the sustainable farming behind this legendary coffee, alongside other products carrying the Valeurs Parc label such as honey, cassava and Martinique chocolate bars. Since then, the momentum has continued: young civic service volunteers continue to be recruited alongside local associations to support growers during the Arabica Typica harvests, proof that this premium sector keeps building itself up.

Discover the birthplace of Martinique coffee in the North with Smartinik

The communes of Morne-Vert and Fonds-Saint-Denis, birthplace of the Arabica Typica revival, lie at the heart of Northern Martinique, close to Saint-Pierre and on the very slopes of Mount Pelée. This is exactly the territory that Smartinik brings to life through its guided tour of Saint-Pierre and its Northern Martinique excursion, at the foot of this volcano which, together with the Pitons du Nord, is now inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Smartinik enriches its tours with explanations of the history of this legendary coffee, its ties to the economy of the North’s historic estates, and its recent revival driven by local stakeholders.

• history of coffee and the sugar and coffee estates of the North;
• the link between the relief of Mount Pelée and the Arabica Typica revival;
• agricultural and landscape heritage of Northern Martinique;
• latest news from the sector according to growers’ schedules.

Smartinik does not systematically organise a dedicated visit to a coffee plantation: this possibility depends on local growers, their availability and the season.