Can coffee be produced sustainably? That’s a big question, and it doesn’t look like anybody knows the long term answer. Industry experts and independent researchers both respond with "Yes, but…" But what? Will coffee be around in 50 years? What must happen to ensure a decent cup in the next century?
Coffee requires a titanic amount of resources to travel from farm to cup, and at least partially thanks to the beverage’s massive carbon footprint, climate change could make it impossible to drink in another few decades. As a global commodity, coffee is one of the most traded products in the world and one of the biggest exports from many developing countries—all of which are subequatorial. The shortest trip that a coffee bean travels from farm to cup in the US is about 1,000 miles— from Chiapas, Mexico into Texas. But, more likely the beans trek significantly farther, and transportation is only one part of the complicated, expensive journey.
Posted on: 2016-11-11 1:39 PM 
