Coffee and the environment

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Changes in how coffee plants are grown has resulted in effects on the environment.

Traditionally coffee plants were grown under the shade of trees, which provided natural habitat for many animals and insects, roughly approximating the biodiversity of a natural forest ^[1]. The trees provided a moderate climate for the plants, and leaves that dropped from the shade trees enriched the soil. Farmers also used compost coffee pulp before chemical fertilizers were available. They also typically rotated crops and cultivated food alongside their cash crops, which provided additional income and food security.^{[citation needed]}

However, in the 1970s and 1980s, during the "Green Revolution," the US Agency for International Development and other groups gave $80 million to plantations in Latin America for advancements to go along with the general shift to technified agriculture.^{[citation needed]} These plantations replaced their shade grown techniques with sun cultivation techniques to increase yields, which in turn destructed vast forests and biodiversity.

Sun cultivation involves cutting down trees, and high inputs of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Environmental problems, such as deforestation, pesticide pollution, habitat destruction, soil and water degradation, are the effects of most modern coffee farms, and the biodiversity on the coffee farm and in the surrounding areas suffer^[1].

As a result, there has been a return to both traditional and new methods of growing shade-tolerant varieties.^{[citation needed]} Shade-grown coffee can often earn a premium as a more environmentally sustainable alternative to mainstream sun-grown coffee.

[edit] References

^ ^a ^b Janzen, Daniel H. (Editor) (1983). Natural History of Costa Rica. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0226393348.

[edit] External links

Coffee & Conservation - Web site devoted to sustainable coffee issues, focusing on the environment and biodiversity.
Bird-Friendly Coffee - Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center's trademarked shade coffee certification web site.
Bird Friendly Coffee - Sun grown vs. shade grown coffee information from BirdWatching-Bliss.com web site.
Coffee Contact - forum for issues concerning coffee production, growers’ cooperatives, and the certification and marketing of sustainable coffees