Coca
Coca is a domesticated shrub whose leaves yield the alkaloid cocaine.
Ralf Roletschek · Public domain
Coca is the name for two cultivated species (Erythroxylum coca and Erythroxylum novogranatense), each with two varieties, totaling four varieties in the Erythroxylaceae family, all native to western South America. The plant is globally famous for containing the psychoactive alkaloid cocaine. When the leaves are chewed or brewed as tea, the cocaine acts as a mild stimulant, but because absorption is much slower than with purified cocaine, traditional use shows no evidence of addiction or withdrawal symptoms.
The coca plant grows as a shrub, reaching 2 to 3 meters tall, with curved branches and thin, oval leaves that taper at the ends. A distinctive feature is the pair of curved lines running alongside the midrib, especially visible on the leaf's underside. It produces small, yellowish-white flowers in clusters, which develop into red berries. The leaves are sometimes eaten by caterpillars of the moth *Eloria noyesi*.
Genomic studies suggest that *Erythroxylum coca* was domesticated from a wild progenitor—possibly *Erythroxylum gracilipes*, though the exact ancestor is not definitively established—while *Erythroxylum novogranatense* was domesticated from *E. coca* itself, meaning the two cultivated species arose from two separate domestication events by different South American groups during the Holocene. Evidence from house floors in Peru's Nanchoc Valley—coca leaves and calcite—indicates that chewing coca leaves dates back at least 8,000 years, likely linked to early communal use alongside the rise of farming. Under the Inca, coca was deeply woven into society for labor, religion, and trade, and the Incas colonized new lands specifically to cultivate it. Spanish colonizers initially tried to suppress its use but later relied on it to sustain enslaved workers. Across Andean cultures, coca leaves have traditionally served medicinal, nutritional, religious, and social purposes—as a stimulant, a remedy for ailments, a spiritual tool, and a source of sustenance, mainly through chewing and tea.
Coca thrives in hot, humid environments and can be harvested multiple times a year from carefully tended plots. It is grown as a cash crop in the Argentine Northwest, Bolivia, the Alto Rio Negro Indigenous Territory in Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Peru—including areas where cultivation is illegal. There are reports of cultivation in southern Mexico using see
- field
- Botany, Ethnobotany
- known_for
- Source of the psychoactive alkaloid cocaine; traditional stimulant and medicinal crop in Andean and Amazonian cultures
- native_region
- Western South America
- domesticated_from
- Erythroxylum coca likely domesticated from a wild progenitor, possibly Erythroxylum gracilipes (exact ancestor not definitively established); Erythroxylum novogranatense domesticated from Erythroxylum
- number_of_cultivated_species
- 2
- number_of_varieties
- 4
Quick Facts
- Plant
- Erythroxylum coca var. coca, / Erythroxylum coca var. ipadu / Erythroxylum novogranatense var. novogranatense, / Erythroxylum novogranatense var. truxillense
- Part
- Leaves, fruits
- Origin
- Andes
- Active
- Cocaine, benzoylecgonine, ecgonine, others
- Legal Au
- S9
- Legal Br
- E
- Legal Ca
- Schedule I
- Legal De
- Anlage III
- Legal Nz
- Class A
- Legal Us
- Schedule II
- Legal Un
- Narcotic Schedule I
- Legal Status
- Controlled unless decocainized, in general legal for religious, medical or traditional use, legal in South America except in Brazil and Paraguay.
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Genomic analysis indicates that the two cultivated coca species arose from separate domestication events: *Erythroxylum coca* was likely domesticated from a wild progenitor—possibly *Erythroxylum gracilipes*, though the exact ancestor is not definitively established—while *Erythroxylum novogranatense* was domesticated from *E. coca* itself, not directly from *E. gracilipes*. Chewing coca leaves dates back at least 8,000 years in South America, as evidenced by coca leaves and calcite found in house floors in Peru's Nanchoc Valley, suggesting early communal use. Coca-Cola, famously named after the coca leaf, was first introduced in 1886, not 1885 as some sources mistakenly claim.
Reader's Guide
Coca holds profound significance as a traditional crop central to the cultures of the Andes and Amazon, where its leaves have been chewed or brewed as tea for at least 8,000 years for medicinal, nutritional, religious, and social purposes. Its psychoactive alkaloid, cocaine, brought it global attention and led to international prohibition under the 1961 United Nations Single Convention, which did not distinguish the leaf from purified cocaine despite traditional uses. This prohibition has been widely contested, with Bolivia and Peru leading efforts to reevaluate its status, including a scheduled 2025 WHO review based on cultural and scientific grounds. The plant's legal commercial use in teas, foods, cosmetics, and beverages has growing political and market support in countries like Bolivia and Peru, despite restrictions elsewhere. Outside South America, coca leaf is generally illegal or heavily restricted, with limited exceptions such as the decocainized leaf extract used for Coca-Cola flavoring in the United States. The cocaine alkaloid content in dry Erythroxylum coca var. coca leaves ranges from 0.23% to 0.96%. Coca-Cola used coca leaf extract in its products from 1885 until about 1903, when it switched to using a decocainized leaf extract. The plant's cultivation remains a cash crop in several South American countries, including areas where it is unlawful, and its role in traditional cultures continues to be fundamental.
Did You Know?
- Chewing coca leaves dates back at least 8,000 years in South America, with evidence found in house floors in Peru's Nanchoc Valley.
- The cocaine alkaloid content in dry Erythroxylum coca var. coca leaves ranges from 0.23% to 0.96%.
- Coca-Cola used coca leaf extract in its products from 1885 until about 1903, when it switched to using a decocainized leaf extract.
- Boliviana negra, also known as supercoca or la millionaria, is a form of coca resistant to the herbicide glyphosate.
Gallery
Frequently Asked Questions
What is coca?
Coca is a domesticated shrub native to western South America, belonging to the Erythroxylaceae family. It reaches roughly 2 to 3 meters in height, sporting curved branches and thin, oval leaves that taper at the tips. Two species have been cultivated, each producing two varieties, for a total of four recognized forms.
What makes coca leaves so well-known?
The leaves contain the psychoactive alkaloid cocaine, which is the plant's global claim to fame. In Andean and Amazonian cultures, however, coca is valued chiefly as a mild stimulant and medicinal crop rather than as a source of the purified drug.
How is coca traditionally consumed?
People in the Andes and Amazonian regions typically chew the fresh leaves or steep them to brew a tea. In either form the cocaine is absorbed slowly, producing a gentle stimulant effect without the sharp intensity of the isolated alkaloid.
Is traditional coca use addictive?
Because the plant's cocaine is absorbed far more gradually when chewed or brewed than when taken in refined form, traditional use shows no evidence of addiction or withdrawal symptoms. This sets everyday Andean coca consumption apart from the pharmacological effects of purified cocaine.
How many types of coca exist?
There are two cultivated species—Erythroxylum coca and Erythroxylum novogranatense—each with two varieties, yielding four cultivated forms in total. E. coca was domesticated from E. gracilipes, while E. novogranatense was in turn domesticated from E. coca.
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