arabica coffee is believed to have been introduced to the cordillera highlands in the mid-19th century. according to william f. pack, an american governor of benguet (1909-1912) during the american colonial period, arabica coffee was first introduced to the cordilleras in 1875 by a spanish military governor of benguet, manuel scheidnegal y sera. he initially planted them in government gardens in the lowlands of the province to evaluate their potential as a regional crop. however, frequent rains and the low altitude were not ideal conditions for the plants. the next governor, enrique oraa, had greater success when he transplanted them at higher altitudes in 1877 and distributed seedlings among the native igorot people. in 1881 however, the then governor, a certain villena, attempted to coerce the natives into growing coffee by ordering them to do so. in protest, native communities destroyed arabica plantations at the advice of village elders.