Losing 20% of output due to storm Mandou, how can the Indian coffee industry recover?
According to the US Department of Agriculture, India’s 2022/23 coffee production will increase by 3.8% to 5.74 million 60kg bags. This data partly confirms the economic value of coffee for 250,000 coffee farmers in India. However, in late 2022, Cyclone Mandou hit southern India, causing significant damage to some of the country’s largest coffee growing areas. What is more worrying is that the impact of the severe consequences after the storm and unpredictable developments due to climate change on the Indian coffee industry may last into the future. So how has this country acted to recover and deal with the effects of natural disasters? Let’s find out with XLIII Coffee!.
The Indian coffee industry suffered serious losses due to storm Mandou
In the first week of December 2022, many producers in south India and surrounding regions have started harvesting coffee. However, on December 10, 2022, the third intense tropical cyclone of the season – Cyclone Mandous hit northern Tamil Nadu. Extremely strong sweeping power with heavy rainfall and sustained winds of up to 65 km and 85 km/h. Harsh weather conditions caused many coffee farms to suffer severe consequences. The amount of light weight, unripe, and damaged coffee cherries right on the tree increased by up to 20%.
Many Indian manufacturers also said that the rains caused by Storm Mandous have accelerated the ripening process of many coffee trees. High humidity and rainfall cause many coffee cherries to fall and crack while still on the tree. This results in less coffee nutrient absorption, light fruit and bland flavor, and reduced inherent value. A high rate of damaged beans causes a higher loss of profit per batch of coffee, severely affecting the economy of farmers. Especially, when 98% of Indian coffee producers are small-scale farmers, especially coffee plantations. Maintenance and input costs for the capital production process are a big investment for them. Hiring workers to handle fallen coffee cherries during the rainy season also increases labor costs by about five times. But the number of coffee cherries that meet the requirements is very low because of the risk of being damaged by mold and pests. Therefore, the decrease in output and quality caused by this storm has dealt a serious blow to the majority of manufacturers in this country.
Besides, India as well as other coffee producing areas are also experiencing many extreme weather types due to climate change. According to the latest report of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, India is one of the most climate vulnerable countries in the world. Estimates show that the country’s exposure to more extreme weather has caused its GDP to decline by 16% over the past two decades. Prolonged droughts, rain, and tornadoes occur frequently and are difficult to predict. This severely affects the cultivation, harvesting, processing and drying of coffee.
What did the Indian coffee industry do to deal with the consequences after the storm?
Most Indian coffee is grown in the shade, so the tree canopy helps protect the coffee from heavy rain and wind, as well as minimizing soil erosion. But the consequences for the farm are still huge. The climate due to prolonged heavy rains becomes humid, causing the amount of damaged coffee to increase. Not to mention tree stumps are also damaged, affecting the productivity and many years of effort of farmers. Under that pressure, many manufacturers have implemented solutions to better adapt to changes in weather. For example, they use large industrial fans to keep coffee cherries dry; cover coffee plants and harvested coffee cherries to protect them from heavy rainfall; Hire more workers so farm workers can rake and spread the coffee more often, thereby helping the coffee dry faster. In addition, coffee farmers are actively looking for methods to improve climate resilience through coffee production such as improving growing areas, pre-processing and processing methods.
Future plans to revive the Indian coffee industry
The genius and vagaries of the weather are becoming more and more common. Therefore, the Indian coffee-growing community believes that it is urgent to focus on building better infrastructure to protect coffee. Optimal solutions to improve the farm include developing climate-resistant coffee varieties. These varieties can help improve yields in India as we deal with the impacts of climate change. Therefore, organizations such as World Coffee Research have recently launched new projects to further support these efforts.
Dealing with the impacts of climate change has never been easy. The Indian coffee industry in particular and the entire industry in general must cooperate to promote useful research and solutions on how to adapt and address climate threats. In particular, transformation towards sustainability is urgent. Therefore, with the principle of sustainable business, XLIII Coffee always operates and supports farms and partners that operate according to science, limiting impact on the environment. We strive to contribute to promoting a high-quality specialty coffee supply chain, taking original flavor and overall balanced economic – environmental – social value as the foundation for maintenance and development. If you want to enjoy specialty coffee that follow purely natural methods, visit XLIII Coffee.
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