Coffee
Climate Risk in Coffee Value Chains
Available research reveals that climate change will affect coffee production worldwide, especially arabica production. Increasing average temperatures, more frequent droughts and heat waves, shifting seasonal patterns, and other factors threaten to upend a large portion of suitable coffee producing areas over the next decades. These changes are likely to increase pressure on water and other natural resources.
How Does Climate Change Affect the Coffee Value Chain?
The production of coffee is affected by different climate threats along its value chain. Click on the buttons below to find information about how climate change affects each link of the value chain:
Land Suitability
Coffee arabica production is highly sensitive to climate change. Significant reductions in climate suitability are expected for most coffee growing regions.
Labor
Agricultural workers are especially vulnerable to increased heat stress, which affects the health of individuals and reduces labor productivity. The Universal Thermal Climate Index identifies outdoor conditions that cause discomfort to people using a combination of temperature, humidity, wind, and radiation to determine the stress (sweating, shivering, skin wetness, etc.) a person undergoes when exposed to outdoor conditions.