Shaping the World Around Us
Background Info:
Today, coffee is a billion dollar industry, but its global impact would have been difficult to fathom at its first discovery. The plant endemic to Ethiopia produces the berries, and the beans within them, that have been renowned for to their ability to provide an energy burst since for thousands of years, but coffee did not become a beverage until much later. (World of Caffeine 4) Peter’s page goes into more detail regarding coffee’s many origin stories and myths. Today, the coffee we drink today generally comes from two species: Coffea Arabica and Coffea Robusta. The Roaster's Pack compiled a short list of some differences between the two beans.
Today, coffee is a billion dollar industry, but its global impact would have been difficult to fathom at its first discovery. The plant endemic to Ethiopia produces the berries, and the beans within them, that have been renowned for to their ability to provide an energy burst since for thousands of years, but coffee did not become a beverage until much later. (World of Caffeine 4) Peter’s page goes into more detail regarding coffee’s many origin stories and myths. Today, the coffee we drink today generally comes from two species: Coffea Arabica and Coffea Robusta. The Roaster's Pack compiled a short list of some differences between the two beans.
Coffea Species:
Both species are grown close to the equator, as they require a climate that does not frost in the winter. One main difference in the growing conditions of these two species is their altitude. Arabica only grows in elevations greater than two thousand feet above sea level, while Robusta can grow at any altitude. With a superior flavor that sells for double the market price of its cousin, the monetary benefits of growing the Arabica strain are clear. Its meticulous growing conditions, however, mean that Robusta is frequently the only option for prospective coffee farmers. The rapidly growing demand for coffee has prompted farmers around the world to grow this valuable commodity. The subsequent spread of coffee trees around the world into a number of different climates has been a mix of the two varieties. The National Coffee Association USA shows a country-by-country look at the different varieties and growing styles around the world. The spread of coffee production is limited to a brief range of latitudes, but its impact radiates around the globe.
Both species are grown close to the equator, as they require a climate that does not frost in the winter. One main difference in the growing conditions of these two species is their altitude. Arabica only grows in elevations greater than two thousand feet above sea level, while Robusta can grow at any altitude. With a superior flavor that sells for double the market price of its cousin, the monetary benefits of growing the Arabica strain are clear. Its meticulous growing conditions, however, mean that Robusta is frequently the only option for prospective coffee farmers. The rapidly growing demand for coffee has prompted farmers around the world to grow this valuable commodity. The subsequent spread of coffee trees around the world into a number of different climates has been a mix of the two varieties. The National Coffee Association USA shows a country-by-country look at the different varieties and growing styles around the world. The spread of coffee production is limited to a brief range of latitudes, but its impact radiates around the globe.
Coffee Effect on Environment:
Since the agricultural revolution, humans have had a tremendous impact on the flora around them. While many plants and animals have relationships that often benefit both parties, humans have an incredibly complex relationship with the plants we chose to domesticate. The agricultural revolution is generally accepted as a decisive period of human history, but as John Speth explained, it also altered the cereal grains humans relied on, and in turn, the landscape around them. Although the coffee tree and its valuable bean have yet to change significantly since human exploitation, humans have drastically changed many environments to suit this valuable crop. As mentioned above, coffee grows best in tropical, lush environments near the equator. In recent years, Vietnam has become an increasingly important coffee producer; soaring to the second largest producer worldwide behind Brazil. This explosion of production has come at the cost of previously forested land. Tropical forests are a haven for biodiversity and help to absorb many of the carbon emissions that contribute to global warming. Mass deforestation of these valuable woodlands is driven by rising coffee prices and farmers realizing the benefit of abandoning subsistence farming in favor of valuable commodities, like coffee. The Vietnamese government is trying to offset this deforestation with their own program, but they are unable to match the rate at which coffee is sweeping through the Central Highlands region (Meyfroidt 1). This issue is far from a domestic matter; however, as global climate change affects every country in a myriad of ways. The rising levels of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere due to deforestation are in part to blame for the climate change associated with the Anthropocene, the proposed geological period of modern life that will become our legacy. |
Human Effect on Coffee:
When humans domesticated grains, they unknowingly selected certain traits and shaped the species by artificial selection. Speth uses the drastic differences between ancient grains and those we have today to show how extreme this effect has been. If we could see the coffee berries first discovered in Ethiopia, they would be disappointingly similar to those we buy at the local grocery store today. The effect humans have on coffee follows a different process, however. It is not a Darwinian story of selection and fitness, but instead involves modern gene sequencing and genetically modifying the plant directly (Feltman 2). Despite a group of fervent detractors, genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are sweeping through the agricultural sector and changing the food we eat. If a successful coffee GMO variant is produced, the notoriously fussy Arabica may be able to grow in lower altitudes. Likewise, Robusta may become tolerant to variable climates farther from the equator. The possibilities are nearly endless as the process of shaping species through selection over thousands of generations can be condensed into a laboratory procedure. In Professor Selcer’s presentation, he showed how the Malthusian limit approaching the Industrial Revolution was overcome through the exploitation of fossil fuels. Looking forward, it seems appropriate to ask whether GMOs will cause a revolution of their own: drastically altering agriculture to the benefit of humankind.
Humans throughout history have tried to control the coffee bean through domestication and cultivation (and now genetic modification), but from another perspective, these efforts have allowed the coffee bean to shape the world around us.
When humans domesticated grains, they unknowingly selected certain traits and shaped the species by artificial selection. Speth uses the drastic differences between ancient grains and those we have today to show how extreme this effect has been. If we could see the coffee berries first discovered in Ethiopia, they would be disappointingly similar to those we buy at the local grocery store today. The effect humans have on coffee follows a different process, however. It is not a Darwinian story of selection and fitness, but instead involves modern gene sequencing and genetically modifying the plant directly (Feltman 2). Despite a group of fervent detractors, genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are sweeping through the agricultural sector and changing the food we eat. If a successful coffee GMO variant is produced, the notoriously fussy Arabica may be able to grow in lower altitudes. Likewise, Robusta may become tolerant to variable climates farther from the equator. The possibilities are nearly endless as the process of shaping species through selection over thousands of generations can be condensed into a laboratory procedure. In Professor Selcer’s presentation, he showed how the Malthusian limit approaching the Industrial Revolution was overcome through the exploitation of fossil fuels. Looking forward, it seems appropriate to ask whether GMOs will cause a revolution of their own: drastically altering agriculture to the benefit of humankind.
Humans throughout history have tried to control the coffee bean through domestication and cultivation (and now genetic modification), but from another perspective, these efforts have allowed the coffee bean to shape the world around us.