60% of Wild Coffee Species In Danger
Source: Science Magazine - Carol Cruzan Morton Hairy berries. Supersize seeds. No caffeine. Compared with the beans that supply our daily brew, the wild relatives of coffee plants can seem downright bizarre. But they also harbor genetic traits that could help farmed coffee plants survive threats such as drought and disease—and maybe create pleasing new cups in the process. Now, a new pair of studies says up to 60% of these wild coffee species could go extinct, some in the next 10 to 20 years, thanks to deforestation, human settlement, and climate change. There are 124 known species in the genus Coffea, but most of us drink domesticated versions of only two: tasty C. arabica, which accounts for two-thirds of the global market, and hardy C. canephora,...