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Forestry, Ecosystems

Forestry, plantation and coffee grinders

Forestry is the art and science of how to manage forests and other wooded areas, often along with other related natural resources in the same geographical area. Forests can and are being used for a number of different reasons, including wildlife habitat, raw material for wood products, recreation, and as carbon sinks. A plantation is a specific usage of forestry, where trees are planted in order to be used for one of these specific tasks in the future. As more and more ecosystems become under threat through misuse, forestry becomes more important as a way to manage and implement plans that are designed to limit any damage that is done. Forests are cut down every day for a number of diverse reasons, with one notable one being to make room for grazing cattle or profitable crops. The coffee industry is one such industry that has been controversial in terms of how it affects many global forests on the way to the production of coffee beans.

Coffee use can be traced all the way back to the 9th century in the highlands of Ethiopia. It spread into the middle east and north Africa, and eventually into Europe , Asia and the Americas. Coffee is now used in practically every corner of the earth, with cultivation occurring in a number of nations. While the coffea plant is native to subtropical Africa and parts of Asia, it is now cultivated throughout the Americas, Africa and Asia. There are two different plants that can be used to make coffee, coffea arabica and coffea canephora. Coffee arabica is the most flavoursome of the two plants and accounts for about three quarters of global usage. Middle and South America, and parts of Africa are the nations that cultivate the arabica plant most successfully. Canephora is cultivated in South East Asia along with Africa and South America. India is a leading producer of the coffea canephora plant, and Brazil is the world leader in coffee production overall.

As coffee usage increases globally, it has a number of both positive and negative effects. New industries are thriving as coffee grinder products and other coffee accessories become popular in the home market, with new jobs being created and new economic growth for many undeveloped nations. With many farmers moving to the method of full sun farming however, the cultivation of coffee is not without its negative effects. Deforestation, habitat destruction, and an overuse of water are three of the biggest problems associated with mass coffee production. The art and science of managing small crops and large trees together in the same environment is a challenging one, but solutions need to be found to ensure a prosperous future for both the coffee industry and for the planet.