The effects of climate change could reduce the global area suitable for coffee production by up to 50 percent by 2050, according to a report issued Monday by The Climate Institute. “Without strong climate action, the areas suitable for growing coffee could halve in a few decades, pushing production upslope, away from the equator and into conflict with other land uses, such as nature conservation and forestry. By 2080, wild coffee, an important genetic resource for farmers, could be extinct,” according to the report from the Sydney, Australia-based organization.
The report says there is strong evidence that climate change is already affecting coffee production via rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns. “The evidence is now clear that climate change is already beginning to impact on coffee production, along with other key world crops. So clear, that leading companies, including Starbucks and Lavazza, as well as the International Coffee Organization, have publicly acknowledged the severity of the risks,” the report says.