Salva Mubarak Senior Features Writer

Numerous studies have pointed out that climate change is going to have a severe impact on the way we live in the near future, including the extinction of some of the things that make this planet the best planet in the universe, like chocolate, wine, shellfish, and rice.

But the biggest thing that’s under the threat of disappearing from the face of the planet forever because of rising temperatures is coffee.

Yes, the elixir that helps you get through the days between Saturday and the next Saturday is not going to be available on the planet after the next few decades.

Recently, former White House chef Sam Kass asserted the importance of sustainable agriculture in an interview. Kass highlighted the warnings issued by several scientists over the past few years that claimed the near extinction of beloved food products like coffee.

“A number of foods that we hold very dear to our hearts and largely take for granted are under a real threat,” said Kass, “And you’re seeing in the future, we’re on track for a lot of those to become quite scarce and some really to be largely unavailable to most people and others just significantly increased in cost.”

At this point, it is estimated that nearly 2 billion cups of coffee are consumed every single day.

Kass is echoing the studies like the one published in January 2022 by researchers from the Institute of Natural Sciences at Zurich University of Applied Sciences. In the study, the researchers revealed that coffee is the most vulnerable crop to climate change. Another 2019 study warned the world that coffee supplies would be severely depleted within the next 30 years.

In August, it was reported that Arabica farmers in Brazil, the top exporters of coffee in the world, are seeing massive losses in coffee crops because of unprecedented temperature changes and this “threatens to extend global supply crunches”.

So what can you do to save your favourite beverage from extinction? Start paying more attention to the coffee that you’re buying, whether in beans or ready-to-drink form. Sustainable agricultural practices can help extend the life of the food item and ensure you get to guzzle down multiple mugs throughout the day to get through it without tearing your hair off. There’s also this company that has started making coffee without using coffee beans.

So the next time you get a craving for a cup of coffee, make sure you drink responsibly!