News and knowledge

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been asked by Congress to do a feasibility study on establishing a coffee genebank in Hilo, Hawaii. The request comes in recognition of coffee's lack of genetic diversity and economic importance in Hawaii. A report from Greenwire cites the work of World Coffee Research in drawing attention to the need for the long-term preservation of coffee genetic resources.

If global warming continues at its current pace, growing the beans in coffee-proud Puerto Rico could be impossible in as little as 50 years, a new study says.

While Washington debates whether climate change is a hoax or an imminent threat, the world coffee industry is not waiting for the American government to take action to protect its business. Coffee crops are under siege from deforestation, abnormally high temperatures, a lack of precipitation, and disease. The global market is heading for its fourth straight year of deficit, according to estimates from Rabobank International. At the same time, global demand for the beloved beverage is expected to reach an all-time high this year, led by demand from younger American consumers. Production will need to increase at least 50 percent by the middle of this century to keep pace with the demand, says Conservation International, an environmental organization. T

With coffee’s genetic resources being lost at a rapid pace, a new strategy aims to unite the industry to preserve this precious material. As World Coffee Research Executive Director Tim Schilling puts it, “We have to step up and take control of the genetic resources that dictate the limits and open the possibilities for the future of our industry.”

At the Starbucks inside Texas A&M University’s Evans Library, students line up for their daily jolt of java. Across campus, in a rather ordinary laboratory inside the horticulture building, Fabian Echeverria is trying to prevent a worldwide coffee shortage.