Study Highlights Environmental and Economic Benefits of Agroforestry for DRC Coffee Crops

Agroforestry, a system of growing coffee in a forest with other trees and plants, can be as productive as monoculture farming but is less harmful. Cultivated agroforestry systems in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) support 19 times higher biodiversity and store twice as much carbon as monoculture systems. The research aimed to quantify the trade-offs among yield, carbon storage, and biodiversity to see whether agroforestry could be a pragmatic solution for farmers.

An analysis of 79 plots covering an area equal to about 192 tennis courts (50,000 square meters or 538,000 square feet) compared coffee yield, woody species biodiversity, and organic carbon both aboveground and in the soil across four different coffee growing systems in the DRC. The two highest coffee yields, of almost a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of green beans per plant, came from both monoculture and cultivated agroforestry. In the monoculture plots, farmers cleared land to only grow coffee trees. In the agroforestry farm, coffee was grown alongside other useful, native tree species.

Growing coffee naturally in the rainforest yielded just 2 grams (0.07 ounces) of beans per plant, but this system easily beat the rest ecologically, supporting 90% more biodiversity and storing three times as much carbon as agroforestry systems.

Sustainability issues are significant in the coffee industry, as over 3 billion cups of coffee are consumed daily, driving a $200 billion-a-year industry supporting the livelihoods of more than 100 million people. More than 90% of deforestation in the DRC and other parts of the world is due to slash-and-burn clearing to grow monoculture crops, such as coffee, by small-scale farmers.

Changing how coffee is produced requires buy-in from the small-holder farmers who grow it, as the DRC is mired in extreme poverty. A’solution’ or regenerative practice will never work if it negatively impacts immediate to short-term agricultural production and farmers’ income.

A study in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has found that coffee systems that protect biodiversity and store carbon have lower yields and profit. However, in the DRC, coffee can still have some biodiversity, carbon storage, and just as much coffee. The research aimed to equip policy-makers, the coffee industry, and coffee drinkers with the tools to make educated, sustainable decisions.

Agroforestry will only become locally important to farmers if it makes a real contribution to their livelihoods. If it is just used to produce ‘guilt-free’ coffee for consumers in rich countries, it has no local value. However, agroforestry can also provide secondary revenue streams, as there is scope to grow other trees and plants for fruits, spices, or edible caterpillars among the coffee trees. This could make cultivated agroforestry actually more profitable than monoculture systems.

Farmers in the DRC feel a certain level of distrust towards the DRC’s National Agricultural Study and Research Institute, foreign researchers, and investors. They face challenges such as the time lag between planting coffee and the first harvest, a lack of regular local coffee buyers, and too little state support.

Lack of access to long-term investment is the main problem in establishing sustainable agrosystems. Trees within cultivated agroforestry systems can take years to mature, and public investors have less resources to finance projects at scale. The private sector hates risking the needed capital and favors short investment cycles. Coffee brokers and consumers should carefully verify that what they buy does not come from areas under active deforestation, large, open, shadow-less fields, or natural forests.

Coffee growing must fit in with the sustainability of the landscape itself, and the livelihood, well-being, and economic perspective of the small-holder producer needs to be at the front of our minds. The moment it gets mixed up with guilt about drinking coffee or the wish of coffee companies to maintain their business, we are in serious danger of maintaining a system where rich people enjoy coffee and large corporations make lots of money with very little ending up with those that need it most.

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