Cheap coffee 'threatens wildlife'
BBC NEWS
Demand for coffee in the West is threatening to destroy
already endangered wildlife, according to new research.
Conservation experts say overproduction of cheap robusta
coffee beans - commonly used in instant coffee - may be
contributing to the loss of tigers, elephants, orang-utans
and rhinos in Sumatra. A study by the New York-based Wildlife
Conservation Society says that large areas of Indonesian
lowland forest are being cut down to make way for coffee
plantations.
Land cleared for coffee production increased by 28% in
Lampung province in Sumatra, the heart of Indonesia's robusta
growing region, between 1996 and 2001. About 70% of Lampung's
coffee production occurs inside and adjacent to Bukit Barisan
Selatan National Park - one of the few remaining strongholds
of Sumatran tigers, elephants and rhinoceros. Populations
of these animals are now declining due to the loss of their
forest home.
Dr Tim O'Brien, who headed the research published in the
journal Science, said: "If we do not act soon, our next
cup of Java may have the bitter taste of extinction." International
deals He said deforestation rates within the Bukit Barisan
Selatan Park were directly related to the price of coffee
paid to farmers. This was in turn influenced by coffee supply
and demand worldwide. Between 1962 and 1989 coffee production
was regulated by the International Coffee Organisation (ICO)
with strong support from the United States. But in 1989,
the US left the ICO and the international agreements expired.
Throughout the 1990s, coffee production accelerated - especially
in Indonesia and Vietnam - while prices plummeted, creating
a coffee crisis. Meanwhile, Western consumption and demand
for coffee continued. Coffee was the second leading export
product from developing countries after oil, and the US
the biggest importer.
Per capita coffee consumption in the US averaged 4.2 kilograms
in 2001. In the same year, Britain imported 10,000 tonnes
of coffee from Indonesia - mainly the cheap robusta variety.
Despite recent low prices, Indonesia has announced plans
to expand robusta coffee production in Lampung as part of
its rural development programme. But Dr O'Brien and his
wife and co-researcher Dr Margaret Kinnaird warned: "Plans
to expand Lampung's coffee production will almost certainly
target forest inside the national park and result in increased
threats to large mammals." They are calling for a return
to regulation, with the US re-joining the ICO, adding that
higher yields of quality coffee would allow a reduction
in acreage while boosting prices. The quality arabica coffee
is best grown in the shade and can be grown among indigenous
shrubs and trees.
The beans fall to the ground making harvest more difficult
than that of robusta beans, which ripen and remain on the
branch. But robusta is usually grown in full sunshine and
areas are cleared to make room for the coffee plants. Dr
Kinnaird said large mammals, such as the Sumatran tiger,
rhinoceros and elephant avoided forest boundaries. "This
means they are disproportionately affected by deforestation
because their available safe habitat... is dwindling faster
than the rate of forest clearance." Pablo Dubois, head of
operations at the ICO, which is based in London, said: "I
think this is a fair assessment in respect of conditions
in Indonesia in that area, but should not be generalised
internationally, because conditions vary very much from
place to place. "If you compare coffee cultivation with
other economic activities, such as mining or even rearing
livestock, coffee is pretty eco-friendly. "In many habitats
coffee will co-exist with a quite considerable degree of
original biodiversity." Story from BBC NEWS:
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