Coffee was introduced to Vietnam in the 1800s and was grown on many French-owned colonial plantations. Nonetheless, due to a variety of political and economic factors (including the civil/cold war and subsequent Communist prohibitions on private land ownership), Vietnam was slow to achieve any real relevance as a coffee-producing nation. As of 1990, Vietnam was responsible for a tiny 1% of world coffee trade.

This had all changed by 1990, by which point Vietnam had reached its current place as the second-highest producing coffee country in the world (after Brazil) – a result of heavy investment in coffee production made possible by the liberalisation of land ownership under Đoi moi reforms in the mid-1980s and World Bank/IMF policy recommendations, incentivising farmers to produce coffee for export. The country’s story of rapid growth, however, left little room for high-quality coffee. Some 95-97% of the country’s production is Robusta, and although Arabica coffee production has been increasing in recent years due to the expansion in the growing area and yield improvement, it still accounts for very little of the overall coffee production in Vietnam.

Coffee production in Vietnam is concentrated in the Central Highlands (80%), and the small portion of Arabica grown in the country hails almost entirely from the Lam Dong province, where the K’No people are located. Dung K’No, home to the K’No people, is a commune of around 500 households, for whom the main source of income is agriculture. The main variety of Arabica grown in the region is Catimor, although wild single yellow bourbon and mocha trees are also likely found in producer’s lots. Catimor was originally chosen for its adaptation to local climate & altitude, as well as its resistance to coffee leaf rust and coffee berry diseases.