Environmental problems

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made in China may seem unimaginable; this could be used as a powerful marketing strategy to attract international tourists that want to understand this new phenomenon.

The coffee tourism experience will encompass all stages of coffee production and tasting.

Tourists will visit coffee plantations to enjoy the landscape and learn about growing techniques; they will observe the complex process of bean selection, production and roasting;

and, finally, they will learn how to brew, taste and enjoy coffee along with other succulent local treats and deserts. Tourists will be encouraged to purchase local products and gadgets to continue the coffee experience back home. The proposed plan for the development of coffee tourism in Pu’er includes the establishment of five main functional areas: a coffee culture exhibition area, a coffee roasting area, a coffee production area, a gourmet coffee area, and a coffee merchandise area.

In order to promote coffee tourism, the government will have to focus on the improvement of coffee culture and knowledge of all personnel involved in this industry. Moreover, it is necessary to improve several other basic services, particularly increasing the number of cafés and coffee stores in Simao (B04; & S04). Additionally, Pu’er should create attractive coffee merchandising for all kinds of tourists. These handicrafts, coffee gift packages and other souvenirs should help improve the way consumers view Pu’er coffee and contribute to advertise this product.

3.5.3. Environmental problems

Massive industrialization is not the sole agent of environmental degradation in China. Long before the country emerged as a top economy in the world, radical policies and bad practices took a toll on China’s countryside. Before the mid-1950s, the forest cover in Pu’er was 80 percent. However, it decreased down to 30 percent after the destructive periods of the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, and the rural reforms of the early 1980s. Given the evident destruction of land, in the late-1980s the government of Yunnan started to implement measures to control and repair deforestation while pushing local agriculture (Sanders, 2000, pp. 204-205). While locals have recovered deforested areas and they now practice a relatively more sustainable agriculture, the massive transformation of the land into coffee fields threatens the sustainability of farming in Pu’er. The arrival of multinational firms and the proliferation of domestic enterprises are leading to a booming expansion of coffee production

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that could increase environmental degradation. The main potential coffee-related environmental issues in Pu’er are threefold: water depletion and pollution, soil erosion, and deforestation.

Coffee is a water intensive crop. Drought affects coffee production in the quantity and also occasionally in the quality of cherries. Scarce rain can change the flowering season. If coffee flowers do not bloom, the cherries will not grow. Sometimes, the period of blooming is delayed and beans do not grow to a full size (B01; & B08). For one of the farmers at the procurement center of Aini-Starbucks, last year’s drought had an impact on the size of the beans. While he normally sells coffee for the joint-venture, part of his last coffee production had to be sold to other buyers that require lower standards (F02). The decrease in rainfall of 2013 had a visible impact on this year’s production (B01; B05; & B10 March 24, 2014). It was particularly severe in Baoshan, where the harvest was half of the previous year because most cherries were empty inside (B01; B06). It is generally agreed that droughts have less impact in Pu’er because the “natural conditions are very good” (B03; G02, March 18, 2014;

S01; B06; B08; & B10 March 24, 2014). Reportedly, the region has up to 70 percent of forest coverage that prevents water from running off and preserves underground water (G02, March 18, 2014; S01). Consequently, no irrigation is needed or used for coffee plantations in Pu’er (B06; & B08). Since coffee farms are usually located in mountain slopes, irrigation is costly and not convenient, leading to extensive waste of water. “We do not suggest or promote irrigation. If coffee can not grow naturally, then this area is not suitable” (B06).

In addition to the water requirements of the plant, coffee processing wastes large amounts of water. According to a research on the water footprint of coffee and tea consumption in the Netherlands (Chapagain & Hoekstra, 2007), the water requirements for coffee are considerably higher than for tea. Although this study was conducted in the Netherlands, the findings are representative of the global average. The results, summarized in figure number 3, show that one cup of coffee requires around 140 liters of water in total. In the case of tea, the average water requirement is 34 liters for a standard cup of tea. Consequently, the water consumption of one cup of coffee is 4 times higher than for one cup of tea.

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FIGURE 3: Virtual water content of a cup of tea or coffee. SOURCE:

Chapagain & Hoekstra, 2007

While the majority of the water requirement of coffee comes from rainwater, and the water used in production only accounts for 0.34 percent of the total, the impact of that small amount is still very significant. First, the water needed for processing has to be extracted, in contrast with the rainwater needed for growing, that comes from a natural source. Second, the waste water generated during coffee processing is heavily polluted and can damage the soil and the environment if not properly managed. Interviewees failed to mention this aspect of coffee production in relation to the use of water resources. A member of the Coffee Association admits that in the future local authorities will have to solve the issue of resource management in coffee production. “If these difficulties are solved, then coffee growing will not cause any problems” (B01).

There is not a strong presence of environmental organizations in Pu’er yet, and no NGOs in the region deal specifically with the issue of the ecological impact of coffee farming. The environmentalists interviewed are not coffee experts but experts in Yunnan’s environment and water resources. They explain that water has been a problem in Yunnan for several years, but research is scarce and government implication remains insufficient. A recent study of the National Disaster Reduction Centre of China showed that, in the future years, agriculture in China could suffer a long term impact from drought. The government is starting to be concerned, but their focus is on short-term solutions like infrastructure instead of long-term resource management. Based on data on coffee growing and their expert knowledge, the environmentalists interviewed ague that water is or will not be enough for coffee production (S02; & S03). The scarcity of resources available in Pu’er will lead to the uneven distribution

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of resources in favor of coffee growing. This is what one of the scholars calls the

“marketization of water resources”; that is, the government prioritizes prosperous industries in the distribution of scarce resources (S02). This includes using clean water for booming industries and polluted water for other less profitable crops.

Since logging was banned in Yunnan, great improvements have been made in raising awareness among farmers and people whose economies depended on forest resources (Xu, &

Ribot, 2004). Except for Manlao River representatives, all interviewees denied the continuity of logging activities in the forests of Pu’er, stressing that “it is against the law”. Only the representatives of Beigui and Arabicasm mentioned that it was not possible to totally confirm that this practice has been eradicated. Three interviewees mentioned that some years ago illegal logging remained a common practice difficult to control (G02, March 18, 2014; B09;

& B10, March 24, 2014). Some farmers may have taken advantage of the less strict control during that time and cleared forests to grow coffee. Some years ago there were isolated cases of individual farmers that secretly grew coffee in the forest; however, after they were caught

“they were forced to clear the coffee and restore the forest damaged” (G02, March 18, 2014).

Interviewees nonetheless stressed the severe control that local authorities have now over forest resources, and maintain that this practice does not occur nowadays. They firmly believe that farmers and companies have now a strong sense of environmental protection. According to them, the laobaixing of Pu’er now give preference to environmental protection over economic development.

A manager of an important coffee company in Pu’er believes that some type of logging activities must be taking place in Pu’er to accommodate the fast growth of coffee area.

However, she emphasizes that this statement is based on her personal opinion and observation rather than on real data. She can only assure that her company does not engage in land expansion because they provide “specialty coffee focused on quality, not quantity”. She, on the other hand, maintains that the government should keep tighter control of the natural resources and agricultural practices in Pu’er that are “increasingly chaotic” (B03).

For environmentalists, the numbers on the expansion of the land in the last 5 years and the prediction for the next 10 years are an unmistakable reflection of logging activities and deforestation. Their argumentation is based on their experience in the extensive cultivation of other crops, like rubber tree in Xishuangbanna. Clearly, coffee and rubber are two different

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plants with different environmental impact, but the push given to coffee growing is similar to that of rubber a few years ago. The monoculture of rubber has led to the aridification of areas in Xishuangbanna. Given that extensive coffee cultivation could lead to similar problems, rainforest and shade coffee and multi-cropping systems are necessary to reduce the environmental impact on the soil. Moreover, they believe that deforestation due to land expansion is a common practice in agricultural development in Yunnan. For environmentalists, the data on the growth of coffee land in Pu’er shows that such expansion is not possible only by change of crops or use of wastelands; “some logging must be taking place” (S02; & S03). They point out that this phenomenon also happened before with rubber tree and eucalyptus in the Xishuangbanna-Pu’er area. To put it simply, “they cut trees to plant whatever gives them more money” (S03). Even though they believe the reduction of forested areas in the region is alarming, they also acknowledge the efforts of the government in encouraging citizens to plant trees and stop the deterioration of the forest. In short, they do not believe the government is intentionally letting farmers cut down trees and destroy the forest; however, they express their concern for the fast development plans for coffee industry, because it can only happen, to some extent, at the expense of the environment (S02; & S03).