Anacafé, Guatemala’s national coffee association, profiles eight coffee regions, each with its own cup profile. This page explains three things a bag of Guatemalan coffee can name: a region, an altitude and a grade. For Antigua there is a fourth. Café Antigua is a registered Denomination of Origin held by the State of Guatemala, and a 2022 presentation by the growers’ association APCA says buyers should demand the certificate of origin. Everything below comes from Anacafé, the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) and APCA documents, plus one 2003 WIPO symposium presentation used only as history, all read on 16 October 2026.
For the eight regions with their altitudes and cup profiles, plus tour prices, see our Guatemala coffee tours guide. This page covers the label and the purchase.
Quick summary:
- Anacafé profiles eight regions: Acatenango Valley, Antigua Coffee, Traditional Atitlán, Rainforest Cobán, Fraijanes Plateau, Highland Huehue, New Oriente and Volcanic San Marcos.
- SHB (Strictly Hard Bean): USDA FAS’s April 2026 Coffee Annual says 81 percent of Guatemala’s exports were classified as strictly hard beans, and that SHB commands the highest prices.
- Anacafé treats growing altitude as a quality factor, but its grade-by-altitude chart is an image. This page gives no altitude per grade.
- Café Antigua is a registered Denomination of Origin held by the State of Guatemala. APCA says the registry’s certification of the inscription was obtained in December 2011. A collective mark, APCA Guatemala Coffee, was registered with a hologram that distinguishes it, and APCA’s presentation calls the certificate of origin the buyer’s guarantee.
- USDA says the United States takes 42 percent of Guatemala’s coffee exports.
The eight regions, as Anacafé names them
Anacafé’s consumer site, Guatemalan Coffees, says Guatemala was the first origin country to come up with the idea of profiling coffee regions. Its Café de Guatemala page says: “En cada una de las regiones estos atributos crean una complejidad especial, dando como resultado ocho perfiles de taza”. In English, each region’s attributes produce eight cup profiles.
The table gives each region’s name as Anacafé’s page title spells it. Each profile block shows four values marked with icons rather than words. We read the value in feet as altitude. That is an inference from the units, and the Huehue and Acatenango page text supports it: both regions are described as grown up to 6,500 feet (2,000 meters). The cup notes are our short paraphrase of Anacafé’s own line.
| Region (Anacafé page name) | Altitude value as shown | Anacafé cup note, shortened |
|---|---|---|
| Antigua Coffee | 5000 - 5600 (no unit on the page) | Elegant, well balanced, rich aroma, very sweet |
| Acatenango Valley | 4300 - 6500 ft | Marked acidity, fragrant aroma, balanced body, clean finish |
| Traditional Atitlán | 5000 - 5600 ft | Aromatic, bright citrus acidity, full body |
| Rainforest Cobán | 4300 - 5600 ft | Fresh fruit notes, fine well-balanced body |
| Fraijanes Plateau | 4500 - 6000 ft | Bright, persistent acidity; defined body |
| Highland Huehue | 5000 - 6500 ft | Fine, intense acidity, full body, wine notes |
| New Oriente | 4300 - 5600 ft | Well balanced, full-bodied, chocolaty |
| Volcanic San Marcos | 4300 - 6000 ft | Floral notes, pronounced acidity, good body |
Anacafé’s region pages add the context behind those notes. Of Antigua: “Rich volcanic soil, low humidity, lots of sun, and cool nights characterize the Antigua Coffee region”. Of Huehuetenango: “Of the three non-volcanic regions, Huehuetenango is the highest and driest under cultivation”. Anacafé calls San Marcos the warmest of the eight, with rainfall reaching up to 200 inches (5,000 mm).
Anacafé uses a second set of regions. Its annual report groups its coffee competitions under administrative regions numbered I to VII. That administrative scheme is separate from the eight cup profiles, and this page does not mix the two.
The words on the bag that mean something
| Word on the bag | What it refers to | Who says so |
|---|---|---|
| A region name (for example Huehue, Cobán, Antigua) | One of Anacafé’s eight cup-profile regions | Anacafé, Guatemalan Coffees region pages |
| Altitude (feet or metres) | Anacafé names growing altitude as a quality factor | Anacafé, Coffee types page |
| SHB / Strictly Hard Bean | 81 percent of exports; highest prices | USDA FAS GAIN GT2026-0003, citing Anacafé |
| HB / Hard Bean | 11% in the 2024/25 quality breakdown | USDA FAS GAIN GT2026-0003, source line Anacafé 2026 |
| Prime / Extra Prime | 2% in the same breakdown | USDA FAS GAIN GT2026-0003, source line Anacafé 2026 |
| Café Antigua, Denominación de Origen | Registered origin, held by the State of Guatemala | APCA 2022 presentation |
| APCA Guatemala Coffee mark with hologram | A collective mark | APCA 2022 presentation |
| Jaguar logo | Guatemalan Coffees logo on export jute sacks | USDA FAS GAIN GT2026-0003 |
On altitude, Anacafé’s Coffee types page says: “One of the many factors that have an impact on the quality of coffee is its growing altitude”. The same page shows the grades and their altitudes in an image. We did not capture a text version, so this page does not convert any grade into metres.
On price, the USDA report notes “strictly hard bean commanding the highest prices due to superior quality characteristics”. On export shipping, USDA writes: “Coffee is now exported in traditional jute sacks identified with the Guatemalan Coffees’ jaguar logo”. That USDA sentence is about export jute sacks.
Step by step: checking a bag before you buy
- Find the region. Match the name against the eight in the table above. A bag that names only Guatemala does not name one of the eight regions.
- Read the altitude and its unit. Anacafé’s profile pages show altitude in feet for seven regions; the Antigua page shows 5000 - 5600 with no unit. APCA gives Antigua in both metres and feet. Compare in the same unit.
- Look for a grade. SHB, HB, Prime and Extra Prime are the grades in USDA’s export quality breakdown. SHB is the grade USDA says commands the highest prices.
- If it says Antigua, ask for proof of origin. APCA’s presentation lists “Que los compradores exijan el certificado de origen” (that buyers should demand the certificate of origin). The section below explains what the certificate stands for.
- Buying at a farm or roaster in Guatemala? Ask which region and farm the coffee comes from. For the Antigua region profile and the history of its Denomination of Origin, see our Antigua coffee tours page. USDA also says buyers can use the Guatemalan Coffees Explore website, which shows the year’s best coffees at farm level.
Antigua coffee beans: the Denomination of Origin and the APCA mark
Antigua is the region for which we captured a Denomination of Origin source. The facts below come from a 2022 presentation by APCA, the Antigua growers’ association, hosted by the EU’s IP Key Latin America project:
- APCA says it is made up of 40 farms located within the region.
- In December 2011 the registry’s certification of the inscription of the Denomination of Origin was obtained, at Número 1, Libro No 1, Folio No. 1. APCA states that the State of Guatemala is the titleholder.
- The presentation records the collective mark in the passive voice: “Se registra la marca Colectiva APCA Guatemala Coffee y el holograma que la distingue”. That means the collective mark APCA Guatemala Coffee is registered, together with the hologram that distinguishes it.
- The presentation describes the certificate of origin this way: “Certificado de Origen, garantía para el comprador que el café es Genuino Antigua”. In English, the certificate of origin is the buyer’s guarantee that the coffee is genuine Antigua. The presentation does not name who issues the certificate, so this page does not either.
- APCA lists 2021 as the start of the process to protect the DO in Europe.
The two sources on Antigua’s growing facts:
| Antigua fact | Anacafé region page | APCA 2022 presentation |
|---|---|---|
| Altitude | 5000 - 5600 (no unit shown) | 1400 - 2000 metres / 4500 - 6500 feet |
| Harvest | not captured | November to April |
| Main varieties | not captured | Bourbon, Caturra and Catuaí |
What we could not source. We did not capture an image or description of the hologram, so we cannot tell you what it looks like on a retail bag. We also did not capture a list of roasters or brands licensed to use the DO. APCA’s website, antiguacoffee.org, showed only an under-construction notice on 16 October 2026.
Some history. At a 2003 WIPO symposium on geographical indications, a presentation by the president of a producers’ network dated the first registration of the Antigua coffee name through a trademark to 1939 and the first certification and labeling program to 2002. The same 2003 presentation said “180,000 to 300,000 bags leave the country, labeled as Antigua”. These are 2003 figures. They are not current data.
The Guatemala-specific angle: who controls what leaves the country
According to the USDA report, Guatemala created Anacafé under public law (Decree 19-69), and “ANACAFE is responsible for issuing export licenses for Guatemalan coffee”. USDA says coffee is grown in 261 of Guatemala’s 340 municipalities, “with 98 percent of coffee grown under shade”. The government also recognises coffee culture: Anacafé’s Café de Guatemala page says Ministerial Agreement 606-2018, published 17 August 2018, established the traditional knowledge of coffee growing as a symbol of identity for Guatemala.
Anacafé’s annual report says it has run coffee competitions in all eight regions since the 2014-2015 harvest, to identify each area’s most representative coffees.
Export volumes and the two USDA forecasts
| Figure | Value | Source and section |
|---|---|---|
| Exports, coffee year 2024/2025 | 3,725,808 quintales oro | Anacafé Memoria de Labores 2024-2025 |
| Exports, coffee year 2023/2024 | 4,088,525 quintales oro | Anacafé Memoria de Labores 2024-2025 |
| Change, as Anacafé states it | 9% down | Anacafé Memoria de Labores 2024-2025 |
| Foreign-exchange income, 2024/2025 | US$1,284,710,833 | Anacafé Memoria de Labores 2024-2025 |
| Export forecast, MY 2026/27 | 2.88 million 60-kg bags | USDA GT2026-0003, Report Highlights |
| Export forecast, MY 2026/27 | 3.2 million 60-kg bags | USDA GT2026-0003, Trade section |
| United States share of exports | 42 percent | USDA GT2026-0003 |
The two forecasts come from the same USDA report, which states two different figures in two sections. We print both and do not choose between them. On buyers, USDA says: “The United States remains Guatemala’s leading export market, accounting for 42 percent of total exports”. For today’s green-coffee benchmark prices, see our coffee price page.
Starbucks and other big-brand Guatemala coffees
We did not capture an official Starbucks product page for this update. This page therefore makes no claim about where any Starbucks Guatemala coffee is grown, how it is graded, or whether it carries the APCA mark. Use the same checks on any brand: a named region, an altitude, a grade, and for Antigua, a certificate of origin.
What this page does not cover
This page does not cover retail bean prices in Guatemala, the altitude for each grade, or harvest months outside Antigua. We did not capture sources for any of these. It also does not cover customs rules for carrying beans home. This page is not legal or tax advice. If you plan to import coffee to resell, confirm your own case with an attorney.
Related
- Guatemala coffee tours and the eight region profiles
- Antigua coffee tours: the Antigua region, its altitude and DO history
- Guatemala coffee price today: the C contract and Other Milds
- All guides
Sources
- Guatemalan Coffees (Anacafé), Regions and profiles: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees (Anacafé), Coffee types: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/coffee-types/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees, Antigua Coffee: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/antigua-coffee/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees, Acatenango Valley: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/acatenango-valley/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees, Traditional Atitlán: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/traditional-atitlan/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees, Rainforest Cobán: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/rainforest-coban/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees, Fraijanes Plateau: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/fraijanes-plateau/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees, Highland Huehue: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/highland-huehue/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees, New Oriente: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/new-oriente/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Guatemalan Coffees, Volcanic San Marcos: https://www.guatemalancoffees.com/main/regions-and-profiles/volcanic-san-marcos/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Anacafé, Café de Guatemala: https://www.anacafe.org/cafe-de-guatemala/ (fetched 16 October 2026)
- Anacafé, Memoria de Labores 2024-2025 (PDF): https://www.anacafe.org/uploads/file/b7e6d68ba1b84832a940745715e270f8/Memoria_de_labores_Anacafe_2025_web.pdf (fetched 16 October 2026)
- USDA FAS GAIN, Guatemala Coffee Annual, Report GT2026-0003, 16 April 2026: https://apps.fas.usda.gov/newgainapi/api/Report/DownloadReportByFileName?fileName=Coffee%20Annual_Guatemala%20City_Guatemala_GT2026-0003 (fetched 16 October 2026)
- APCA, Café Antigua Denominación de Origen, IP Key Latin America, 2022 (PDF): https://ipkey.eu/sites/default/files/ipkey-docs/2022/IPKEY-LA_Cafe-Antigua_Evelia-Ardon.pdf (fetched 16 October 2026)
- WIPO Symposium on Geographical Indications, ORIGIN presentation, 11 July 2003 (PDF, historical only): https://www.wipo.int/edocs/mdocs/geoind/en/wipo_geo_sfo_03/wipo_geo_sfo_03_21-part2.pdf (fetched 16 October 2026)
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Guatemala's coffee regions?
Anacafé, Guatemala’s national coffee association, profiles eight coffee regions: Acatenango Valley, Antigua Coffee, Traditional Atitlán, Rainforest Cobán, Fraijanes Plateau, Highland Huehue, New Oriente and Volcanic San Marcos. Anacafé says each region’s attributes result in eight cup profiles. Our Guatemala coffee tours guide lists the eight regions with their altitudes and cup profiles.
What does SHB mean on a bag of Guatemalan coffee?
SHB stands for Strictly Hard Bean. The USDA Foreign Agricultural Service’s Coffee Annual for Guatemala (report GT2026-0003, 16 April 2026) says 81 percent of Guatemala’s exports were classified as strictly hard beans, and that strictly hard bean commands the highest prices because of its quality characteristics. Anacafé’s consumer site shows the grades and their altitudes in an image that we could not capture as text, so this page does not give a metre threshold per grade.
How can I tell if Antigua coffee is genuine?
Café Antigua is a registered Denomination of Origin. APCA, the Antigua growers’ association, says in a 2022 presentation that the registry’s certification of the inscription was obtained in December 2011, at Número 1, Libro No 1, Folio No. 1, and that the State of Guatemala holds it. The same presentation says a collective mark, APCA Guatemala Coffee, was registered together with the hologram that distinguishes it, and describes the certificate of origin as the buyer’s guarantee that the coffee is Genuino Antigua. The presentation says buyers should demand that certificate. We did not capture an image of the mark, so we cannot describe what it looks like on a bag.
At what altitude is Antigua coffee grown?
The two sources give different ranges. Anacafé’s Antigua profile shows 5000 - 5600 with no unit on the page. APCA’s 2022 presentation gives 1400 to 2000 metres, or 4500 to 6500 feet. We print both as each source states them.
Is Starbucks Guatemala Antigua coffee from Antigua?
We did not capture an official Starbucks product page for this update, so this page makes no claim about any Starbucks product: not its farms, its grade or whether it carries the APCA mark. The same checks apply to any brand: a named region, an altitude, a grade, and for Antigua, a certificate of origin.
How much coffee does Guatemala export?
Anacafé’s Memoria de Labores 2024-2025 says exports in the 2024/2025 coffee year closed at 3,725,808 quintales oro, 9% below the 4,088,525 quintales oro of 2023/2024, bringing in US$1,284,710,833. For 2026/27 the USDA report states two figures: its Report Highlights forecast 2.88 million 60-kg bags and its Trade section forecasts 3.2 million 60-kg bags. USDA says the United States takes 42 percent of Guatemala’s exports.
When is coffee harvested in Antigua?
November to April, according to APCA’s 2022 presentation. We did not capture harvest months for the other seven regions.
