For the next five years World Coffee Research focuses research on helping farmers address the climate crisis and on giving them tools to be more productive (photo: CIFOR)
World Coffee Research (WCR) unveiled a new five-year strategy that focuses on using research to help coffee farmers address the climate crisis and the use of innovations to improve their livelihoods. Formulation of the strategy followed a global consultation effort in 2020 that provided feedback from industry, which helped inform the scope and priorities of WCR’s research mission.
“In 2021-2025, our strategic aim is to preserve origin diversity in the face of the climate crisis by accelerating innovation for coffee agriculture to enhance the productivity, profitability, and quality of coffee across major market segments in multiple, strategically targeted countries,” WCR said.
Explaining why it selected origin diversity as the focus of its strategy, WCR said fewer countries product more of the world’s coffee, so it’s harder to find the unique flavors that coffee drinkers want. This trend also creates significant risk to the stability of coffee supplies, consolidating the benefits of productivity, profitability, and quality in the hands of fewer farmers. It also limits the distribution of benefits from coffee export revenue, whereas aligning innovation across multiple origins ensures stable supplies and benefits industry, farmers, and consumers.
“In genetics, in agricultural systems, and in global economics alike, diversity confers resilience,” said WCR. “The stakes have never been higher for a tree crop like coffee. A coffee tree planted now will suffer the full brunt of climate change over the next three decades, and so will farmers. But growing coffee also has the potential to contribute to climate mitigation goals. Coffee needs to build resilience and creatively drive innovation. The alignment of collaborative agricultural r&d efforts to support origin diversity helps to achieve this and will help distribute the benefits throughout the value stream.”
Vern Long, c.e.o. of World Coffee Research, said, “The strategy anchors us in priority geographies and reaffirms our primary focus on coffee varieties for the long-term future of coffee.” It identifies 11 focus countries – 5 in Central America, 3 in Asia, and 3 in East Africa – that together are home to more than half of the world’s coffee farmers and account for more than 30% of global exports. In these countries, WCR will build stronger, deeper partnerships and continue to focus on partnerships with research organizations around the world.
“Our strategy focuses investment on the innovation gaps in coffee agricultural r&d to generate innovations that benefit farmers. We will also focus on challenges that are often invisible at the consumer end of the supply chain. While they may be invisible to consumers, they are critical to the continued availability of coffees from diverse origins and driving opportunity for the farming communities who bring us these wonderful coffees.”