This cannot be the world we plan on leaving our children.
Starbucks is apparently considering changes to their business model following reports that coffee farmers around the world are having a harder time growing the goods.
“What we are really seeing as a company as we look 10, 20, 30 years down the road – if conditions continue as they are – is a potentially significant risk to our supply chain, which is the Arabica coffee bean,” said Starbucks Sustainability Director Jim Hanna in a phone interview with the Guardian.
In addition to Central America’s farmers already feeling the effects of global warming on their crops, Hanna told the Guardian of his plans to visit Washington to speak to members of Congress at a Union of Concerned Scientists event to speak about climate change and coffee.
This isn’t the first time a commodity has been threatened by global warming. Earlier this month, a report came out by the International Center For Tropical Agriculture warning chocolate could become a luxury item if farmers don’t adapt to rising temperatures in Ghana and the Ivory Coast, where a majority of the world’s cocoa is grown.
Just this past week, peanut butter brands announced price hikes up to 40% thanks to the worst peanut harvest in 30 years from severe weather.
Scientists have seen this issue coming for a couple of years. In 2009, the following list of food imports were placed on the “endangered” list too…
Italian Pasta – Scientists at the British Meteorological Office warn that Italy may soon be forced to import the basic ingredients to make pasta because climate change will make it impossible to grow durum wheat domestically. Rising temperatures and decreasing rainfall in the Mediterranean region mean Italy’s wheat yields will start to decline from 2020, the scientists say. The crop could almost disappear from the country later this century.
French Wine – Home to some of the world’s most revered winemakers, France is losing its enviable climate for grape growing. Because a wine’s taste is a result of the balance of sugar and acidity in the grapes it is made from, the right growing temperature is essential. Grapes grown in cold are unlikely to develop fruity flavors, giving an acidic taste. Warm weather produces too much sugar, leaving a “jammy” and heavy taste. Top French sommeliers and winemakers have written an open letter to French president Nicholas Sarkozy demanding action on climate change to protect one of the jewels of French culture, or at least the temperatures those precious grapes are grown in.
Argentine Honey – Honeybee populations are collapsing everywhere from California to France. After China and the U.S., Argentina is the third largest honey exporter in the world, accounting for 22% of the global market. But low-lying hives in the South American nation have been hit by flooding since 2006. Wetter winters and rainy summers also make it harder for bees to get out and about to collect, leaving them to starve or become malnourished and more prone to other diseases. This doesn’t just mean a decline in honey. We rely on bees to pollinate crops. When bees disappear many food crops could also die off.
German Beer – The famous beer-making regions of East Germany could suffer from a drop in production due to climate change-induced water shortages. Water is vital to grow barley and hops and using cheaper alternatives like corn isn’t possible in Germany because of strict regulations about what you can make beer with. Hops, a preservative and flavoring agent grown in northern climates, require moist soil, a hard-winter freeze and a hot summer. As the weather warms, those conditions may vanish. The European Union recently funded a major $9 million irrigation system for hop farmers in Germany so this crop can survive the hot summers to come.
Vietnamese Rice – Poor countries are less able to spend big to fix some of the looming problems. Vietnam currently exports $2.9 billion worth of rice every year, but that trade is increasingly in danger. According to the Asian Development Bank, Vietnam’s rice production could decline dramatically as rising sea levels submerge tens of thousands of hectares of cropland by the end of the century. Because Vietnam’s rice industry depends on low-lying farm areas in the Mekong and Red River deltas, even relatively small increases in sea level could have disastrous consequences for the country. This poses a food security threat as well, given that Asian nations rely heavily on rice to feed their masses.
Spanish Fruit and Vegetables – Spain’s culinary traditions rely on an abundance of locally grown vegetables and fruits. But rising temperatures are predicted to turn much of the country into desert say scientists leading a European Commission-funded research project.
Northern European Vodka – The global vodka market is worth $12 billion annually. But rising temperatures in places like Poland threaten ingredients such as potato and wheat according to the British Meteorological Office. Expect prices for a bottle of vodka to rise.
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