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> Though, I suspect what would happen is that coffee roasted in Ethiopia would be somehow worth less than German-roasted

If it was ever done, it would cost 5x or 10x more, thanks to the heavy sanctions placed on processed coffee exported from Ethiopia, but not from Germany.

As another example, I saw endless fields of palm and cocoa plantations all through West Africa. Famously Japan allows imports of raw cocoa with a 0\% tax, though they tax finished chocolate products at over 280\%. This means Africa will never be able to sell processed cocoa products there, and are forced to be content selling raw beans for a tiny fraction of what they could be sold for if processed.




Even without sanctions, even with equal infrastructure. They always find a way, not just to protect European profits, but to punish African ambition.




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