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Local politics, the county, and the world, as viewed by Tammy Maygra Tammy’s views are her own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Bill Eagle, his pastor, Tammy’s neighbors, Wayne Mayo, Betsy Johnson, Brian Stout, Former President Trump, Henry Heimuller, Joe Biden, Pat Robertson, Ted Cruz, Joe Biden’s dogs, or Claudia Eagle’s Cats. This Tammy’s Take (with the exception of this disclaimer) is not paid for or written by, or even reviewed by anyone but Tammy and she refuses to be bullied by anyone. See Bill’s Standard Disclaimer
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Coffee The Nectar of the Gods
Are we about to lose the ability to drink coffee? OH NO!!!!!
Coffee is a fussy plant, Arabica coffee is the most popular variety we drink. And climate change poses a huge threat to the coffee business and to farmers. To grow well, coffee crops require particular temperatures, light and humidity levels are the key to good crops. But by 2050, indicators show, rising temperatures will reduce the area suitable for growing coffee by up to 50%. But then the changing climate could mean that some countries could newly accommodate coffee. Is there hope for coffee drinkers world wide? But where crops are now growing things must change in order for coffee farms to continue on growing that wonderful nectar of the gods. There is hope for coffee. Starbucks, which says it purchases about 3% of all the world’s coffee, is developing new Arabica varietals that are specifically cultivated to hold up better on a warming planet. For more than 10 years, agronomists,( or crop scientist, studies plants and how they can be grown, modified, and used to benefit society. They use science to carry out experiments that create new techniques for agriculture production). at Starbucks have been breeding different types of coffee trees, trying to find ones that will yield a high amount of fruit in a relatively short amount of time and, among other things, resist coffee leaf rust, a disease that attacks coffee trees and is exacerbated by climate change. After coupling hundreds of varieties, the company has landed on six that will thrive in the changing climate and offer good quality and taste. Some of the varietals that the agronomists have been working with and testing are seeing their harvest in a two-year bearing cycle, instead of three or four years. In Hawaii, rainfalls have become more irregular, and when the rains come, they’re more severe, which is hard on the plants, and causing coffee leaf rust. In 2021, Starbucks made a commitment to invest in in forest protection and restoration, and set other climate-related goals which might also save this species of coffee. Other coffee varieties, like Robusta and Liberica, hold up better than Arabica in these difficult conditions. But coffee makers tend to avoid these varieties because consumers like how Arabica tastes and smells. The goal is to develop varieties that taste like Arabica but are more resilient, like other varieties. Climate change will rise the cost of coffee, and the availability of coffee beans. Maybe consumers will have to change their taste of coffee and be prepared to pay lot more for their morning Joe. Even before Starbucks developed its own climate-resistant varieties, it had been offering climate-resistant seeds developed by others (and sometimes tweaked by Starbucks) to farmers. It has given away three million seeds annually over the past five years, according to the company. In addition to the seeds, Starbucks has distributed about 70 million coffee rust resistant trees to farmers, as part of its goal to give out 100 million trees by 2025. Starbucks is trying to edge its bet which means keep its business going amongst the severe effects of climate change. Myself, I don’t buy Starbucks but I do buy other brands of coffee and am glad Starbucks is trying to save our morning cups of Joe. I for one refuse to drink English Tea! We Ended That in 1776
Tammy
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