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Climate Cast ®
Paul Huttner and Megan Burks

Climate change and your cup of joe

littlefallscoffee
Coffee beans at Reality Roasters of Little Falls, Minn.
Tom Baker for MPR

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Coffee is a very finicky crop, needing just the right “Goldilocks” climate and altitude to produce rich, quality brews. Even a slight change can throw a harvest off, so it’s no wonder that climate change would affect our morning cup of joe.

A study out last month in the journal PLOS One adds to a body of research estimating the already-limited areas that are suitable for growing coffee will shrink by 30 to 50 percent by 2050.

A map showing where coffee is grown.
The regions where coffee can grow are expected to shrink by 30 to 50 percent by 2050, according to a Jan. 26, 2022 study published in the journal PLOS One. The areas shaded with red above are expected to become less suitable for growing coffee.
Courtesy of PLOS One

Already, small growers are beginning the difficult task of breeding arabica plants that can better withstand changes in the climate.

“It’s a perennial crop. It takes usually about five years for it to start producing coffee, which means that you can’t just try out a new variety every year,” said Elizabeth Shapiro-Garza, an associate professor who studies food systems and sustainability in Latin America for Duke University.

Some roasters are also experimenting with robusta coffee. It’s a less popular variety than arabica because of its bitterness, but is naturally more resilient to climate change.

Shapiro-Garza joined Climate Cast this week to talk about the effects of climate change on coffee. Click play on the audio player above or subscribe to the Climate Cast podcast to hear the episode.

What we’re reading this week: