Coffee Farmers Are At Risk Of Extinction Due To Climate Change
In recent years, coffee growers around the world have been constantly battling adverse conditions such as droughts and pests. Although coffee is grown almost everywhere, from South America to Africa and Asia, scientists are concerned that nearly half of this land will be unharvestable by 2050.
Coffee growers and enthusiasts have reason to worry about the world's caffeine supply. Coffee is susceptible to fungi, such as Hemileia differatrix, which damages leaves, and Colletotrichum kahwae, which destroys the fruit. Coffee plants also have to contend with the coffee stem borer, a small insect that lays its eggs inside coffee beans. Coffee is also difficult to adapt to changing weather patterns, such as heat waves, droughts, and unusually heavy rainfall, all of which not only stress the plants but can also promote disease outbreaks.
The problem isn't limited to extreme weather conditions or disease outbreaks. The danger also lies within the coffee plant itself. While an average coffee shop might boast over a dozen varieties, with diverse origins and flavors, most coffees are produced by the same plant species, known as Coffea arabica. First discovered in Ethiopia, C. arabica became the most widely cultivated coffee variety (and remains so today). Legend has it that the plant was first discovered by a herd of curious goats who enjoyed eating the berries. People noticed that the goats became incredibly healthy and energetic after consuming them. Following this lead, humans began brewing the berries into an energy drink. And in its early days, coffee was used as a mystical sacrament, playing a significant role in religious ceremonies as men and women sipped it from a shared bowl that they passed around.
From its earliest beginnings, C. arabica was not a cultivated plant, but rather a gift of nature discovered by humans and animals. It was likely first domesticated in Yemen, where it maintained a monopoly on production for over two centuries. Eventually, the coffee bean made its way into the world and spread rapidly. Around the 1690s, some coffee beans were brought to Europe. Grown in the Amsterdam Botanical Gardens, the coffee developed and bore fruit. From there, the plant was cultivated in Suriname, South America. A few years later, the British brought the plant to Jamaica and the French to Martinique. Within the same timeframe, C. arabica reached Sumatra, Ceylon, and the Philippines. In Brazil, coffee cultivation began around 1774.
However, despite being a beloved beverage, coffee is an "orphan" plant, with little research on its genetic diversity or adaptability. No single company or country has a monopoly on coffee beans, which is why farmers can grow coffee from any seeds they like. But most of those seeds belong to the species C. arabica, and that's the problem. Like any other crop cultivated by humans, C. arabica may have lost some disease resistance traits or other recovery characteristics. That's why scientists today are searching for wild coffee species and sequencing the DNA of coffee beans from gene banks around the world.
Is the future of coffee secured? Scientists are working to do just that. There are around 125 other undomesticated coffee species being cultivated in different regions of the planet, and there may even be more waiting to be discovered. But even with wild varieties, nearly 70% could become extinct, with 10% disappearing within the next decade due to climate change, deforestation, and other adverse events. Scientists must find and cultivate these plants quickly so that we can all continue to enjoy our delicious morning coffee.
