Did you know that in the last ten years, the Philippines has lost about 80,000 hectares of coffee farms? Only about 120,000 hectares of productive coffee land remain, mostly concentrated in the mountains of Batangas, Bukidnon, Benguet, Cavite, Kalinga Apayao, Davao and Claveria. Some parts were even used for marijuana planting over coffee since it was more profitable but because of the Figaro Foundation Corporation, the Philippine Coffee Industry is slowly trying to get back to where it was and where it should be - a top producer of coffee and not just .012% of the world's supply (where we are today).
That percentage is really small and the worst part is that the Barako coffee plant is on its way to extinction. The coffee industry is slowly dying but the good thing is that foundations like that of Figaro and the Philippine Coffee Board are doing their best to help the industry get back to its feet.
This is just sad for the Philippines since we could still be the number one supplier of coffee beans in the world. If it weren't for the coffee rust that plagued our land some 150 years ago, we could have had control of the 30% Brazil, the number one supplier, has today. Another problem that we have faced in the last 10 years or so is that of coffee farming and the use of technology for it. It hasn't been profitable for coffee farmers because they don't have any control over the prices of coffee. Second is that those lands that were used for farming are now industrialized or commercialized. When this happens, land taxes go up and coffee farmers won't be able to cope with this leading to them selling the land. As for technology, the Philippines is again not up to date and doesn't have the money/support when it comes with the latest machines. Unlike other coffee countries, we are very slow in the production since it is done by hand, which is very labor intensive and inefficient.
This is very alarming but let us not worry too much, as I see a lot of people supporting our local coffee industry and I am pretty confident that we could be one of the top suppliers of the second most traded commodity again. Yup, coffee is that big in the world! There are a lot of coffee addicts(like us) in the world today and we, the Philippines, should be supplying them and letting them taste how good our coffee is. Let everyone enjoy our coffee...taste of the Philippines..taste of home(for those OFW or who have migrated to other countries).
As I said, I am pretty confident that we could pull this through but they alone, can't do it. We should do our part! Learn how you can help save the barako, go to Savethebarako.org Let us all do our part in helping our coffee industry be the number one supplier for coffee in the world.
(As a coffee lover, of course I wouldn't tell you to stop drinking international coffee or purchasing international coffee beans but try making it a habit to include Philippine Coffee in your coffee "diet.") Tickle Away to a Great Day!
For Philippine Coffee supporters,
Include what's Good in your cups of coffee. - Coffee Tickle
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