Arabica of the western highlands, Robusta below
Cameroonian coffee runs on two levels: Arabica in the high west and northwest — the Bamboutos highlands and the country around Bamenda — and Robusta in the lowlands. Fertile volcanic soils and highland climate provide the conditions for high-potential Arabica; Java (Typica-line) stock introduced in the colonial era has long been grown here. After independence coffee served as a key export crop, but production contracted against a backdrop of depressed prices.