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MORE than half of the world’s wild coffee species are threatened with extinction due to forest destruction, climate change and disease, scientists warned today.
Of the 124 species of coffee, 75 are under threat, with 13 classed as critically endangered, researchers at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, found.
With 60 per cent of species at risk, coffee is in far greater peril than plants in general, which have an estimated 22 per cent of species worldwide threatened with extinction.
Lead author of the study Dr Aaron Davis said the findings were a “real wake-up call” that would start “ringing alarm bells.”
He added: “It’s a tragedy losing any wild species, whether it’s a bird or plant or animal, that’s bad enough.
“But when you’ve got a crop that supports the livelihoods of 100 million people just in production in coffee farming, then you look at value of high-street coffee chains and supermarket coffee, it’s enormous.”
Researchers called for increased conservation efforts and support for the African countries, where most wild species are found, to help them protect their resources.
