This year’s harvest, expected shipment timelines, product lineup, and what we’re seeing on the ground
The 2026 Peru coffee harvest is wrapping up, and this year is bringing a few changes to the market and to the coffees we’ll be offering. Production is down across much of the country, the harvest has been more uneven than usual, and competition for quality coffee remains strong.
However, we’re still seeing great coffees across the North and South, while also expanding our sourcing into Central Peru, and putting more intentional focus on the micro-regional and family lots that have become an important part of our Peru programme.
Our Green Coffee Buyer for Peru, Rory Rosenberg, recently spent time at origin in Lima and in the North, travelling alongside customers and meeting with our suppliers and producers. The trip was an opportunity to cup coffees for our spot programme and get a first-hand look at how this year’s harvest is developing.
A smaller harvest, a sharper focus
The biggest factor driving the 2026 Peruvian coffee harvest is volume. Peru is experiencing a significant low-production year, with an estimated 30–40% less cherry production than usual. Low and high production years are a normal part of the coffee cycle, but the decrease this year has been particularly noticeable. In some areas, leaf rust has also affected plants that were already producing less, further reducing the amount of coffee available.
The harvest has also been more uneven than usual, especially within Northern Peru. During Rory’s trip, some farms were already finished while others were only beginning to process their cherries. For us, this means being particularly focused on our buying windows and selecting the coffees that fit both our quality requirements and our shipping timelines.
Lower production is also happening against a backdrop of strong global demand for Peruvian coffee. This is keeping competition high and prices firm. While there is considerable variation from coffee to coffee, we expect average prices to be broadly similar to last year. We’re continuing to work closely with our suppliers and producers to balance quality and price, while ensuring the coffees we buy offer fair value throughout the supply chain.
A new chapter: sourcing coffee from Central Peru
One of the most exciting developments this year is that we’re continuing to expand our sourcing beyond Northern Peru.
We’re sourcing from Central Peru for the first time this year. The supplier we're working with, Villa Rica Highlands Coffee, brings together five families and five farms, with each family contributing to the wider business. We’ll be sourcing from two of these farms this season.
What makes this partner particularly interesting for us is their setup. The families have their own dry mill, giving them a high level of control over processing and allowing them to work in a more vertically integrated way. Their coffees also bring something different to our existing Peru selection, with varieties and profiles that we don’t typically see in our Northern and Southern Peru supply chains.
Distinctive microregional & family-built coffees
While we’re expecting less volume from the producers we work with, that doesn’t mean a less interesting Peru selection. We will still have great microlots available, but we’re also putting more emphasis on family-built lots and micro-regional coffees.
Peru has seen more broad regional blends in recent years. By working with smaller producing areas, we can highlight the character of individual regions and build more distinct profiles.
You’ll see some familiar names returning, including Las Mishas, alongside family and micro-regional coffees such as the Familia Alarcon, La Higuera from Colasay, La Condesa from Chirinos and La Perla from Lonya Grande in Amazonas.
“These coffees are an important part of how we approach Peru: rather than simply looking for volume from a large geographical area, we’re interested in working with our suppliers to identify smaller pockets of quality and build them into consistent programmes”, says Rory.
Southern Peruvian coffee: later harvest, later shipments
Southern Peru follows a different harvest rhythm. The harvest happens later in the season, with many farms sitting at considerably higher elevations — around 2,000–2,200 masl and sometimes as high as 2,400 masl. The coffees we source are also being developed as micro-regional lots together with our suppliers.
This year, our Southern Peru selection includes two naturals and one washed coffee. These coffees will ship later than our Northern and Central Peru coffees but later does not mean delayed. They come from a naturally later harvest and will be shipped once the coffees are ready.
We expect Southern Peru shipments to leave in December, with arrival in Europe expected in early 2027.
Shipping and sample timelines for our Peruvian green coffee
While this year’s harvest presents some challenges, our approach remains the same: work closely with our suppliers, cup widely, and select the best coffees available to us within the harvest and shipping windows.
When are the coffees shipping and when will they arrive?
The first shipments from Northern and Central Peru will begin leaving in late September, with further shipments through October and November. We expect all these coffees to arrive at our warehouse by the end of the year.
When can I get samples?
Preshipment samples from the new harvest will be available from October, including coffees across the wider selection and not only blends. Southern Peru will follow with shipments in December and arrivals expected in early 2027.
Read more: What makes Peru’s natural coffees so rare and exceptional
