Studies reveal the impact of climate change on Ethiopian specialty coffee production areas

Researchers from different parts of Africa and Europe detailed how climate change could affect what is considered to be the growth of "specialty coffee" production in Ethiopia in the coming decades.

By incorporating advanced models of climates, topography and soils using specific geographic reference points across Ethiopia's coffee lands, the research made a one-of-a-kind prediction of how specific Ethiopia coffee growing regions would be affected up to year 2090.

At the same time, the research explains the consequences of such changes in the market. It does this by identifying the real or perceived value of certain Ethiopian geographic origins such as Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, Harar, Nekemte and Limu within the differentiated specialty coffee market.

The findings indicate that it is expected that the production areas suitable for the cultivation of arabica coffee would change as climatic variations occur. Thus, many existing areas would become unsuitable and many currently unsuitable areas would become suitable. Importantly, the conditions required for "specialty" or high-quality coffee are expected; worsen in almost all regions, according to the study authors.

"The results show that we can expect an overall increase in coffee growing potential in Ethiopia, but a decrease in most specialty coffees (except Nekemte) due to climate change in the coming decades - until 2090," they wrote. .

Overall, the research presents a more coffee- and climate-focused view, compared to the 2014 climate study that predicted that the area currently suitable for growing arabica worldwide could be cut in half by 2050. Studies subsequent to this year in Ethiopia they have provided map models, predictions of new height requirements for coffee growth, and predictions on the extinction of wild arabica species.

A major study conducted in 2017 predicted that up to 59% of Ethiopia's coffee plantations could become unsuitable for coffee growing by the end of the century due to climate change.

This new study, led by author Abel Chemura, a postdoctoral researcher at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Germany, goes even further by addressing agricultural factors that Third Wave coffee followers might call " terroir ", a phrase obtained from the wine industry.

"In addition to the general requirements for Arabica coffee production, and perhaps most importantly, the coffee quality profiles are strongly influenced by the local climate (rainfall, temperature, humidity and radiation), the topological factor (elevation, angle of slope and aspect) and the edaphic factor (soil depth, acidity / alkalinity and fertility), "wrote the authors of the study, published this month in Scientific Reports." These factors give coffee distinctive characteristics specific to the area of ??production. The combination of these factors is unique for each region and, therefore, difficult to replicate. Therefore, slight modifications will affect the final profile of the coffee, but impact studies on this important aspect are lacking ".replica uhren audemars piguet

The full study can be found here

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Source: Nick Brown. (Apirl 27th, 2021). Climate change will alter the specialty coffee landscape in Ethipia, study shows. Daily Coffee News. https://dailycoffeenews.com/2021/04/27/climate-change-will-alter-the-specialty-coffee-landscape-in-ethiopia-study-shows/

Adapted by the Peruvian Chamber of Coffee and Cocoa