Where Coffee Begins: Stories From the Forests that Shape Our Industry's Future - From Forest to Cup: Transforming Forest Landscapes into Global Coffee Assets
(Room 24 C)
10 Apr 26
9:00 AM
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9:45 AM
This lecture explores a central idea: the future of coffee depends on the forest landscapes where coffee originally evolved. Coffee is not simply an agricultural commodity, but a forest product shaped by biodiversity, shade, soil ecology, and climate stability. Some of the highest quality and most distinctive specialty coffees in the world come from forest and agroforestry systems, yet global coffee supply chains have largely developed in ways that degrade these ecosystems, creating long-term risks to supply, quality, and farmer livelihoods.
The session argues that forest and agroforestry coffee systems should be understood not only as conservation priorities, but as productive landscapes and investable assets. It will present models of landscape restoration and regenerative production that demonstrate how forests can produce high-quality coffee while generating carbon, biodiversity, and long-term supply security value.
The lecture reframes forest coffee not as a sustainability niche, but as critical infrastructure for the future stability, resilience, and economics of the global coffee industry.