The incidence of coffee berry borer, a small beetle recognised globally as the most destructive of coffee pests, will be higher in central and eastern regions of the country, the key producers of the country's export coffee, states ICIPE.
Even small increases in temperature will lead to serious consequences on the number of generations, as well as the latitudinal and altitudinal range of the borer, adversely affecting coffee production in East Africa and parts of South America." ICIPE said in a statement released last week.
This report comes as a shock to government that has been mulling plans to revive an industry that once served as the country's foreign exchange earner.
Fluctuating temperatures and rainfall, the hallmarks of climate change, have already led to the spread of thrips (tiny insects known to destroy coffee beans by puncturing and sucking up their contents) in the coffee growing districts, lowering farmer's output.
“There is serious thrips outbreak in most coffee regions which is likely to worsen after the end of the cold (July, August) season," Dr Joseph Kimemia, managing director of the Coffee Research Foundation, said in an industry alert issued in July.
In spite of the good international prices government statistics indicate that coffee production dropped by 22.2 per cent in 2010 to 42,000 tonnes, leading to forex earning of Sh16 billion compared to peers like tea (Sh97 billion) and horticulture (Sh78 billion). Read the full report here.
Source: Business Daily.
