coffee business strategies

I happened upon an interesting article in the Trinidad & Tobago Express that discusses a theory proposed by Dr. John Agard that Jamaica Blue Mountain is loosing its characteristic flavor as a result of climate change.

Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee losing its taste

I suspect that climate change is playing some role in the shift and that the most dramatic affect in the coffee industry will be felt first in island coffees (such as JBM or here in Kona); however, I am also confident that climate change is not the biggest problem facing Jamaica’s coffee growing industry.

Also like Kona, a reliance on brand origin name above product quality has flooded the world market with poor quality coffees (blended and 100% pure) bearing the JBM origin mark — consumers are just not willing to pay $50 per pound for substandard quality coffee. In both places, new advances in farming technology are immediately necessary in order to cultivate the best possible coffee crops or we can expect that these world origins will disappear.

I fear that it’s already too late.