Counting the cost of a cup of coffee

There is a steady increase in the consumption of agricultural products around the world. Simultaneously, the quality and productivity of soil around the world is deteriorating. These twin trends are set to shape the future of world agriculture. To avoid further soil degradation, it is vital to understand the environmental impact of agricultural production and find ways to minimise it.

Research from the WWF presents a global picture of agricultural production patterns for 21 of the world’s most important crops, including coffee, one of the most legally-traded agricultural commodities in the world and one of the most important income crops for small farmers in developing countries. Coffee production provides a livelihood for 25 million people in developing countries and globally, 10.6 million hectares of land are used for growing coffee beans

Growing coffee is not always a reliable source of income, however. While coffee production increased by 61 percent between 1960 and 2000, prices fell by 57 percent during the same period. Two of the most significant factors affecting coffee production are the relative costs of land and labour. Depending on the variety, coffee plants are productive for between six and twenty-four years during which time land and labour costs will change. The value of local currencies is also a factor: chemicals and fertilisers are usually imported and if local currency values decline, imported inputs are more expensive.

Growing coffee has significant environmental impacts:

• Establishing coffee plantations results in the clearance of natural forest areas. This trend is made worse by the increasing demand for high-grade speciality coffee, which requires more land.
• Chemical use contributes to soil degradation. A shift to new production methods (such as full-sun production) has increased pesticide use enormously, resulting in lower insect populations and reduced nutrient recycling by soil.
• As coffee processing has moved away from the farms and fields, waste pulp is dumped in rivers, thus reducing levels of oxygen in the water and degrading freshwater ecosystems. It could instead be used as a soil amendment for coffee crops.

Significant measures are required to reduce these negative impacts. Several conservation strategies have been developed by producers, non-governmental organisations and governments alike, but each must be adapted to the region or country in question if they are to be successful. Generally, the research recommends that:

• The expansion of coffee production into natural forest areas should be prohibited - protected areas and zoning regulations could prevent unnecessary environmental degradation
• Farmers should be discouraged from converting to full-sun coffee production as this method can cause more environmental damage than coffee produced in under a forest canopy.
• Farmers should be encouraged to and supported in diversifying into other crops - growing fruit trees or vegetables amongst coffee plants can bring alternative sources of income and reduce dependence on a single product.
• Methods for coffee processing minimising water use should be developed.
• Soil in plantations should be left uncultivated to protect it and generate organic matter and nutrients that would otherwise need to be bought.

Coffee production is a big business and attracts big money, including subsidies as well as premiums from concerned consumers. If the environmental impacts of coffee growing are to be minimised, such payments should be used to encourage farmers to convert to cropping systems that are friendlier to ecosystems and biodiversity.

Source(s):
‘World Agriculture and the Environment: a commodity-by-commodity guide to impacts and practices’ Island Press and WWF-USA, by Jason Clay, 2004

Funded by: World Wildlife Fund; Ford, MacArthur, Avina and Packard Foundations; Pew Charitable Trusts; Interchurch Organisation for Development Co-operation; World Bank; Food and Agriculture Organisation; Inter-American Development Bank

id21 Research Highlight: 1 February 2005

Further Information:
Jason Clay
Centre for Conservation Innovation
WWF-USA 2253 North Upton Street Arlington, VA 22207 USA

Fax: 1(0) 703-524-0471
Contact the contributor: jason.clay@wwfus.org

WWF

Other related links:
'Searching for sustainable cotton production'

'Balancing food security and sustainability: the challenges of rice production'

Eldis - the Coffee Crisis in Context

International Coffee Organisation

'The 'latte revolution'?: winners and losers in the restructuring of the global coffee marketing chain' - CDR working paper