A brief coffee story

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The coffee tree & its remarkable berries were first discovered growing wild in the region now known as Ethiopia. Coffee was first prepared not as a beverage but as a food. African tribes would use stone mortars to crush the ripe cherries from wild coffee trees, mix them with animal fat & then fashion this exotic blend into round balls, which they consumed on their war parties.
Around 1000 AD the neighboring Arabs began to boil the dried, crushed seeds to make a hot drink. Due to religious, medical, & commercial considerations, prohibitions & powerful restrictions on the export of trees & Cultivatable seeds impeded the spread of the bean through Arabia & subsequently Europe/the Americas.
During the seventeenth and early centuries the habit of coffee drinking spread westward across Europe and eastward into India and Indonesia. First a Muslim pilgrim carried it to India, and then Europeans brought it to Ceylon and Java. From there coffee spread into Amsterdam and Paris. Finally, coffee became an important new crop in the Caribbean and South America. It was also during this time in Vienna that coffee was introduced to its long time companion…milk.
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, tools and machinery were simple and most power derived from renewable resources like water and wind. By the end of the century complex machinery changed people's lives and power was provided by coal and oil. Like everything else, coffee was acutely affected by these changes. Among industrialized nations, the United States led in replacing craft roasting with pre-roasted, pre-ground coffee. Preferences for store-bought bread and pre-roasted coffee were driven by the myth of progress and convenience in industrialized society.
The quality of coffee in the U.S. declined after World War II with the widespread introduction of Robusta coffee. This species was developed to improve yields, and grow in marginal conditions. Cheap Robusta coffees were adopted by the giant commercial roaster for mass-market canned and instant blends.
Coffee is the largest traded commodity throughout the world; yes, even greater than oil. Frost, un-seasonal rains, political upheaval, and even volcanic activity can affect the price and availability of green coffee.
A single coffee tree produces about one pound of coffee. If you also consider that a coffee tree may take at least 3 years from planting to becoming viable, you can understand the huge investment on behalf of the grower. Add in all the other factors, such as weather & politics, and it is understandable why these Arabica beans are more expensive, and thus a consumer pays a higher price at the counter.