You didn't read the article carefully enough- the 250 lbs refers to the output of one specific harvester, not the output from all 30k coffee trees in CA.
Nope. “Last year, the 24-member coffee cooperative harvested 250 pounds of beans.“
So 24 farmers harvested 250 lbs, all of it bought by the one roaster at $60 /lb. Coffee plants take 18 months before they start producing harvestable amounts of cherry.
That’s some crazy expensive coffee. If I buy the most expensive coffee the importer brings in here is (copy paste) GUATEMALA FINCA EL SOCORRO YELLOW BOURBON $20.70NZ (which is $15.28 US).
In that sort of price range are some fantastic coffees - I struggle to see how something 4x more expensive could be that much better.
My go to is Ethiopian Yirgacheffe which is a few dollars cheaper at NZ $17.50.
Try Panama geisha from Ninety plus, it's much more expensive and better taste as well (depends fully on roaster). I've tried Hawaii Kona exclusively from UCC farm, and Blue Mountain genuinely from Jamaica, both are better than the rest but still not satisfied with the price.
Edit: I didn't mean to compare Guatemala vs. Panama coffees, just noting the price range.
So 24 farmers harvested 250 lbs, all of it bought by the one roaster at $60 /lb. Coffee plants take 18 months before they start producing harvestable amounts of cherry.