Cheap coffee is leading to deforestation of lowland forests in Indonesia

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http://ens-news.com/ens/apr2003/2003-04-25-09.asp#anchor5

 

Cheap Coffee Is Bad for Wildlife

 

NEW YORK, New York, April 25, 2003 (ENS) - The demand

for cheap coffee is leading to deforestation of

lowland forests in Indonesia, according to a study by

the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). These forests

are home to Indonesia's last remaining wild tiger

populations and populations of elephants and rhinos.

 

The study, published in the journal " Science, " details

how falling coffee prices worldwide has led to

increased Indonesia production of robusta coffee, the

inexpensive variety commonly sold in cans and used in

instant coffee.

 

The increased production has resulted in more forest

being cleared, even in national parks.

 

The report finds that between 1996 and 2001, land

cleared for coffee increased by 28 percent in

Indonesia's Lampung Province, the heart of the

country's robusta coffee region.

 

Seventy percent of Lampung's coffee production occurs

inside and adjacent to Bukit Barisan Selatan National

Park, one of a few remaining strongholds of Sumatran

tigers, elephants and rhinoceroses. All three of these

species are declining due to fragmentation and loss of

forest habitat, according to WCS scientists.

 

" If we do not act soon, our next cup of java may have

the bitter taste of extinction, " said the study's lead

author, Dr. Tim O'Brien of the Wildlife Conservation

Society.

 

The study traces the spike in coffee production to the

U.S. withdrawal from the International Coffee

Organization, an international United Nations' cartel

formed to balance supply and demand of coffee in an

attempt to ensure fair prices.

 

By pulling out of the organization, the United States

caused a jump in supply that cut worldwide prices in

half, the report's authors explain.

 

The United States can, however, play a key role in

changing the market conditions that are encouraging

deforestation in Indonesia, O'Brien says.

 

The report suggests that as the leading consumer of

robusta coffee the United States should recommit to

the International Coffee Organization and call for

certification programs to make coffee more

wildlife-friendly.

 

U.S. consumers, the report's authors write, can help

by purchasing coffee that is certified and provides a

fair price to farmers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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