Coffee Is The World's Second Largest Commodity

It is impossible to overestimate coffee’s global importance. Valued at over $100 billion, it is the second most sought-after commodity. Ponte, an expert on the coffee-trade, maintains that over two billion cups are consumed daily. The majority of consumption occurs in developed countries, whilst 90% of production takes place in developing countries. For many nations, coffee cultivation forms the backbone of their economy, an essential avenue for employment and revenue. In Brazil alone, the industry employs an astounding five million people. Seeing as millions depend on this commodity, I always felt good about buying my daily coffee– I was contributing to the economic enfranchisement of millions! However, recent readings have cast a doubt on my strategy.

Coffee has not only impacted the world socially, but it provides financial means for many countries who export their coffee beans.

The genus coffea produces berries that are used to obtain coffee. The commercially exploited species are coffea Arabica and coffea robusta. Coffea Arabica is the most used species that is used to extract coffee. This type is found in the highlands of Ethiopia, Sudan and Kenya and produces high quality coffee.

This scholarly text book, part of a series called Current Controversies, is composed of primary sources taken from a diversity of informational categories including books, newspapers, periodicals, international government documents, and the publications of organizations. The authors in this series examine some of the issues that typical arise in the debate about pesticides, including whether they are detrimental to human health, animals and the environment, whether they are essential to curtailing international hunger, and what the future of pesticides might be. This book widely mirrors the mosaic of opinions in both parts of the debate regarding the benefits and harmful effects

The 9th largest coffee producer in Latin America is Peru. It is mainly produced in the valleys of Chanchamayo and Urabamba. The coffee is described as being “mild, flavorful, and aromatic”. Most farms are small in the country, being only 5 acres. The crops are grown all over the country, but

​Over time, the tradition of taking the highly lucrative cash crop of coffee has become universal to the extent that its production is marred with interference from political, social, economic, and scientific concepts that affect its production. In Central America, the major countries that produce coffee include Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Nicaragua. In these countries, coffee is among the largest traded commodities. Normally, this production takes place through small-scale farmers who are largely dependent on larger corporations to bridge the gap between them and the consumers. Coffee production in Central America is affected by social, economic, globalization and political factors that

Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in Latin America. Coffee was introduced to Nicaragua in the mid 1800’s. Since then it has played a crucial role to both Nicaragua’s economy and its environment. It is currently the nation’s primary sources of foreign exchange. Coffee plantations are the economic backbone for thousands of rural communities. Today coffee also supports the 45,334 families that own and operate small farm. In the late 1990s, coffee annually contributed US$140 million to the national economy and provided the equivalent of 280,000 permanent agricultural jobs. Also, the rural communities who cultivate this golden bean are inadvertently helping in preserving Nicaragua’s precious forests and its threatened biodiversity. However,

Farmers are looking into this crop because it is being grown in avocado groves. Many people are considering growing coffee in avocado groves. It has become a major dispute between many farmers. In the article, Stephanie talks about how many people will pay money for these coffee beans (Storm, Stephanie. “Your Coffee is from Where? California?” New York Times, May 26, 2017). However, climate is also playing a role in the making of coffee beans. The climate affects the growth of coffee. The climate is damaging the crop. If it is very hot outside, the crop does not grow. Coffee growth has decreased due to the heat. In the article, coffee drinkers are more likely to spend money on their coffee rather than to drink it black. The avocado trees are increasing the growth of coffee because it is providing the crop cover. It is protecting the crop from heat which can damage the growth. These avocado trees are very important because without these trees, coffee would not be

This paper argues that there needs to be a greater harmonization of legislation regulating highly hazardous pesticides used in agriculture within all nations. With the numerous studies conducted illustrating the harmful effects to human health and environment, this stricter control of legislation across developed and developing countries is of utmost importance. This requires each nation to have a complete understanding of the methods and practices used to regulate pesticides in other countries and work together to converge the various approaches. It is the role of the government to find a responsible balance between enabling judicious pesticide use where such use is necessary to achieve desirable crop production levels, and reducing the

Coffee consumption in the US and Europe equals approximately one-third of the tap water consumed annually, with annual production of approximately seven million tons estimated in 2010 (http://www.coffeefacts.com). Worldwide, nearly 25 million small producers derive their income from coffee; the economies of Africa, Indonesia, and South and Central America are especially dependent on coffee production. The majority of this production takes place in Brazil, where approximately five million people are involved in the cultivation and harvest of over 5 billion coffee plants without the aid of modern machinery. (Rice, 2003, p. 228).

Rather, the responsible way to solve this problem is to find a “happy medium” wherein food production and people’s livelihoods are not damaged while also looking out for the safety of those that have to handle these pesticides. In the US, this is done by a strict level of government oversight and regulation of pesticides by the Environmental Protection Agency. The agency studies pesticides and their potential harms to humans, wildlife, and plants, as well as possible contamination of groundwater. On top of all this, a pesticide must first be registered before it can be used. This is done through a process that looks at “Ingredients used; the particular site or crop where it is to be used; the amount, frequency, and timing of its use; and storage and disposal practices” (“Pesticides”).

The first link in the coffee commodity chain is at the producer, in this case, that's the farmer. Coffee farms have a wide range of sizes varying from five acres to one thousand acres. Smaller operation farmers collectively produce more than half of the supply of global coffee; although in some occasions, large coffee farming operations will supply a nation’s entire coffee output. Much of the coffee industry’s infrastructure (producing, processing, marketing) caters to the needs of larger coffee farmers in a large number of instances. These large operations typically have growing and processing facilities on one property and are owned by one person or small group of people. Many small operation farmers and workers are at the mercy of the

I was struggling to find a research topic that affected my day to day life while also being plant related. In the beginning, I was unclear but the answer was in my face the entire time. First, I am a college student and far from a morning person. Second, I work at Dunkin ' Donuts. Lastly, I consume it 6 days a week. Coffee plays a huge role in my life. It is a great topic to research and it is plant related. As I approached my research, I thought I would start with what I know: the coffee bean. Right away, I learned that coffea (scientific name) is a type of flowering plant. It is a part of the rubiaceae family and can be spotted by its simple, opposite leaves and interpetiolar stipules. These plants are natives of Southern Africa and

Finally, global economic issues have an immense influence on the world of coffee. Throughout history there has been a pattern that coffee producing countries are economically worse off than those that are consuming the coffee. Pendergrast mentions that “in 1950 the average income in consuming countries was three times that of coffee-growing nations. By the late 1960s it was five times great” (270). With that said, many producing coffee countries were facing endemics and malnourished peoples because workers were receiving absurdly low wages thus placing them into poverty and human suffering (271). Specifically, although 90 percent of El Salvador’s exports consisted of coffee in the 1930s, they agonized from “‘low wages, incredible filth…[under] conditions in fact not far removed from slavery’” (168). Global economic issues of these producing countries lead to dictators easily gaining power such as those in Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Honduras (170). Not only was politics a matter that resulted from global economic issues, “the high interest rates from financial institutions and price [squeezes]” lead to the economic struggle of farmers like those from Colombia due to

One concern about pesticides and herbicide usage is the amount of residues left on the end product of crops sprayed with the chemicals, and their effects on human health. (Williamson, 2007, p. 184). However, these effects are closely tested and levels are strictly regulated to ensure there is no danger from possible pesticide residues. Since 1910, many rules, regulations, and agencies have been formed to monitor the safety of the pesticides and herbicides used in conventional farming. These chemicals must meet specific safety standards in order to be registered for use, and regulations on levels of each product safe for use are also put in place. (Tafel et al.,2007, p.184). All pesticides are rigorously examined to ensure they have no significant effects on human health, or the environment. The residues in the food chain are closely monitored, and regularly tested, to ensure they are below legal limits. In a recent survey of residues