The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1909-02-22
This Remarkable Record Has
Been Made in Past Twenty
Years, an Average of 100
Million Annually.
UNITED STATES LEADS
IN COFFEE DRINKING
Asia Supplies the Bulk of the
Tea Supply While America
Leads in Coffee and Cacao
Expectation.

the United States during the past
twenty years, or an annual average of
about 100 million dollars. In some
years the total of coffee, tea, and ca
Gao is considerably more than 100 mil
zion dollars. Coffee imports alone
have on certain occasions, approx
mated 100 millions in value, while tea
has ranged from 8 million to Is mil
lion dollars per annum, n cacao has
grown from 2 million dollars a year to
IA million dollars a year, having in
1907 and 1908 attained practically the
same rank as tea in import value.
Roughly speaking it might be said
that the annual ~importations into the
United States Of coffee, tea and cacao
amount to 100 million dollars a year,
of which three fourths is coffee and
the remainder about equally divided
between cacao and tea.
As Coffee Exporter.
America supplies the bulk of the
coffee and cacao and Asia the tea. Of
the coffee imports taking the fiscal
year 1908 as an example, the figures OF
the bureau of statistics Of the depart
ment of m and labor, show
that out of the $50 million pounds i'm
ported 700 million came from Brazil
another 100 million from other
South American countries, 20 million
from Mexico and Central America, and
~ million from the West Indies, the
remainder coming from parts OF the
world other than America. OF this re-
mainder 8 million pounds came direct
from the East Indies, 2 million from
Netherlands, presumably brought from
her East Indian possessions, 4 millions
from Asia and Oceania, other than
the East Indies. and about another
million pounds from United Kingdom,
Germany, and other European coun-
tries, presumably the product Of their
tropical colonies. Thus America sup
plies practically % per cent of the
coffee imported into the United States.
OF the cacao imports, America also
supplied the very large proportion.
The total quantity imported in 1903
was So million pounds of which 40 mil
lion pounds came from the West In
dies, II millions from Brazil, 1411a mil
lions from other South American ~
tries, IA millions from the East In
dies. and nearly 10 million pounds
from European countries into which 1t
had been imported. presumably chiefly
from their tropical colonies.
Orient as Tea Market.
OF the o. million pounds of tea i'm
ported in 1908. it nay be safely said
that practically all OF it was produced
Sn th, N~Snr% 4thO,,uh IL rni1lfnO
pounds came from the United King
dom presumably the product of her
Asiatic possessions chiefly India and
Ceylon: 215 million pounds entered
from British North America, the pro-
duct of the Orient, reaching Canadian
soil either across the Pacific or by
way of Europe INT the Atlantic; A
million pounds came direct from Jap
an t o the United States; 27A million
pounds from the East Indies.
The above figures of imports of cot.
fee, tea, and cacao are only those OF
imports from foreign countries. In ad-
dition to this, small quantities, espe.
cially of coffee, are now brought into
the United States from u own is
lands. From Hawaii. in which the
production of coffee is a comparatively
new industry, the quantity of coffee
brought into the United States in the
fiscal year 1908 was 100000 pounds
From Porto Rico in which the coffee
industry is we'll established, but which
sells its coffee chiefly to European
countries, the quantity brought into
the United States during the yea men.
toned was $4,000 p~ounds-Porto Rico
expectation Of coffee to foreign coun
tries having amounted to about 81
million pounds. From the Philippines
the quantity brought to the United
States is very small. in man. years
none. The coffee industry in those is
lands, which was formerly very pros
porous, has in recent years suffered tC
such extent from a blight that export
ations from the islands have practi
cally ceased, though the fact that SINH
lar conditions which overlook the cot.
fee industry in the Dutch East Indies
were successfully combatted n the
production and expectation of coffee
resumed, suggests that the Philippines
nav with proper attention again be
come large producers and exporters Of
coffee.
Americans Like Coffee.
The United States is the worlds
largest Of coffee and cacao
but not Of tea. Coffee im~portations by
the principal countries of the world in
1906, the latest year for which Stats
tics are available. amounted. accord
ing to a statement OF the Department
OF Agriculture, to 2,577 million pounds,
OF which 9S5 millions were imported
by the United States. 412 millions by
Germany, 256 millions by Netherlands,
ZIG millions by France. 119 millions by
Belgium. and 113 millions by Austria,
Hungary. while in no other country
does the total reach as much as 100
million pounds.
a. 49, ooe niilion nonndS ~ caoan