RCI | English : Interviews

Is our morning coffee in danger?


Listen Later

Apparently a fungus is attacking coffee trees and reducing the harvest.  This is mostly in central and south America where some of the best beans come from.

Stuart McCook (MS, PhD), a professor of history, and assistant vice-president international at the University of Guelph, and author of Coffee is Not Forever: A Global History of the Coffee Leaf Rust.

ListenEN_Interview_1-20200205-WIE10

The coffee rust fungus apparently has always been around but is being made worse by changing climate conditions. McCook says this is a similar situation to that which is happening to banana crops also now being threatened with fungus.

A worker picking coffee 'cherries' on a plantation on the slope of Agua volcano, Guatemala 2015 (Nadia Sussman-Bloomberg)

Compare the healthy tree above with this tree which has been attacked by the coffee leaf rust in 2013 in Gualemala (Moises Castillo-AP)

While progress is being made in developing plants resistant to the rust, the other factor is the weather. As climate changes it’s likely there will be less suitable land available to grow the trees. Added to that is a growing world demand.

Professor and author Stuart McCook at a coffee farm,  Finca Sol Naciente in Dota, Costa Rica. (supplied)

McCook says its likely there will coffee available in the foreseeable future, but that may be only if the farmers themselves earn more to pay for resistant plants and as an incentive to keep growing coffee instead of other crops. That means, and likely no surprise here, that in coming years your cup of coffee may increase substantially in price.

Stuart McCook- Coffee is not forever" A global history of the Coffee. Leaf Rust. Note the photo of the coffee leaf attacked by rust
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

RCI | English : InterviewsBy RCI | English

  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5

5

1 ratings


More shows like RCI | English : Interviews

View all
RCI | Español : Reportajes by RCI | Español

RCI | Español : Reportajes

0 Listeners

RCI | 中文:采访 by RCI | 中文

RCI | 中文:采访

1 Listeners

RCI | العربية - تقرير by بلا حدود | RCI

RCI | العربية - تقرير

1 Listeners

RCI | Français : Entrevues by RCI | Français

RCI | Français : Entrevues

0 Listeners

RCI | بيتي في كندا - العربية by بلا حدود | RCI

RCI | بيتي في كندا - العربية

0 Listeners

RCI | العربية - بلا حدود by بلا حدود | RCI

RCI | العربية - بلا حدود

0 Listeners

RCI | 中文:七十年来人与事:加拿大华裔学者赖小刚谈中国 by RCI | 中文

RCI | 中文:七十年来人与事:加拿大华裔学者赖小刚谈中国

4 Listeners

RCI | English : Portraits of Black Canadians by RCI | English

RCI | English : Portraits of Black Canadians

0 Listeners

RCI | Français : Minorités francophones au Canada : présence et résilience by RCI | Français

RCI | Français : Minorités francophones au Canada : présence et résilience

0 Listeners

RCI | العربية - قصص نجاح عربية في كندا by بلا حدود | RCI

RCI | العربية - قصص نجاح عربية في كندا

0 Listeners