Whether its a quickly chugged-down morning cup, a lukewarm afternoon jolt from the coffee machine at work, a pumpkin spiced latte in the fall or a specialty cold brew in the summer, coffee has cemented itself as an important ritual in the lives of many Americans.
But what the latest generation of coffee lovers may not know is that the coffee industry is in crisis. Even as we get used to what seems like an ever-expanding range of coffees, this diversity of taste and flavor could disappear. Poverty, the impact of climate change and the spread of disease are driving small coffee farmers out of business and leaving your morning brew in the hands of mass producers.
Once diversity is gone, it wont be replenished. Earlier this year, researchers revealed that 60% of all wild coffee species are under threat of extinction due to deforestation, climate change, and the increasing severity of fungal pathogens and pests.
The result will be consumers waking up in the morning to far less choice, warned Peter Kettler, a senior coffee manager at Fairtrade International, which works to protect the interests of farmers in lower-income countries. That would be a loss, he said. I think theres a lot of people today who are looking to coffee for more than just a caffeine delivery service.
Coffee is big business, worth around $90 billion globally. Americans drink more than 400 million cups every day and U.S. coffee consumption has increased by nearly 3% over the past four years. Global production also continues to rise , led by Brazil and Vietnam, which together already produce more than half of all the coffee in the world.
But an oversupply has helped push global coffee prices close to their lowest level in a decade. With dropping prices, farmers particularly those operating the small farms that make up much of production in developing countries like Honduras and Burundi are struggling to stay afloat.
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