PUERTO RICO
Puerto Rico may be getting warmer and drier and those changes in climate could threaten the country’s coffee group. A new study by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that climate change may harm growing conditions. If temperatures and greenhouse gas emissions keep rising, conditions likely will suffer, according to USDA.
The study is the first to use fine-resolution climate projections for Puerto Rico to model the effects of warming temperatures and changing rainfall patterns on coffee growing conditions, the USDA statement cited.
The study was published in the journal Climatic Change.
“This study is part of USDA’s effort to develop and deliver information to help reduce the risks of climate variability and change,” said Dr. William Gould, director of the Caribbean Hub based at the USFS International Institute of Tropical Forestry.
Arabica beans dominate Puerto Rico’s coffee production and high temperatures combined with low precipitation can result in reduced coffee quality and yields, plus increased exposure and sensitivity to insects and diseases, the study concluded.
“High greenhouse gas emission scenarios project temperature increases that, without adaptation, will make growing traditional varieties of Arabica challenging,” explained Stephen Fain, lead author of the study. “Our findings reveal differences in the potential effects of high and low CO2 emissions on coffee.”