Plantation farming in Tropical Rainforest

Case Study: Coffee plantation in Brazil

Characteristics of plantation farming in TRF

• usually a large farm or estate, especially in a tropical or semitropical country, on which cotton, tobacco, coffee, sugar cane, are cultivated, usually by resident laborers

• an intentional planting of a crop, on a larger scale • most of these involve a large landowner• with a number of employees carrying out the work plantings of trees and shrubs. cereal production or pasture. plantings maintained on economic bases

subsistence farming

Different types of plantation

• High value food crops– Plantings of a number of

trees or shrubs grown for food or beverage, including tea, coffee, and cacao

• Arable crops– These include tobacco, sugar

cane, pineapple, and cotton, especially in historical usage.

Tea plantation in Cameron Highlands Malaysia

• Sugar– Sugar plantations were

highly valued in the Caribbean by the British and French colonists in the 16th and 17th centuries and the use of sugar in Europe rose during this period. Sugarcane is still an important crop in Cuba.

Rubber

• Orchards– Fruit orchards are

sometimes considered to be plantations.

Sugarcane plantation in rural Cuba

Coffee plantation in Brazil

• Coffee was introduced in Brazil in 1727 from French.

• Initially it was planted only for domestic use. Today, Brazil is the world's largest coffee producer and produces around 25% of the world’s supply of coffee.

• The vast majority of coffee farms in Brazil are less than 10 hectares in size.

71% of farms : less than 10 hectares 25% of farms : less than 50 hectares 4% of farms : larger than 50 hectares

coffee beans

3 main growing regions in Brazil

• Mogiana• Sul de Minas • Cerrado

– The biodiversity of cerrado is extraordinary

Map of the Cerrado ecoregion

Coffee Plantation in Cerrado area

Coffee and the environment

• Originally, coffee farming was done in the shade of trees– provided natural habitat for many animals

and insects– farmers used compost of coffee pulp and

excluded chemicals and fertilizers– rotated crops and cultivated food

alongside their cash crops, which provided additional income and food security

shade coffee

But…… Shade-grown techniques was replaced by sun cultivation

techniques in order to increase yields.

Great investment coffee crisis increased technification increase productivity

Different types of growth:

*鄉村式（ Rustic）

*老式混合種植（ Traditional polyculture）

*商業混合種植（ Commercial polyculture）

*樹蔭單一種植（ Shaded monoculture）

Sun cultivation

– involves cutting down trees, and high inputs of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

=>Environmental problems (effects of most modern coffee farms)

• deforestation

• pesticide pollution

• habitat destruction

• soil and water degradation

• biodiversity on the coffee farm and in the surrounding areas suffer

Biodiversity --- Birds and coffee plantations

• Shade-grown coffee plantations harbor a diversity of many living things, orchids, insects, and mammals, for example.

• The multi-layered vegetation of shade-grown coffee plantations provides food (e.g. invertebrates and nectar) and cover for migratory and resident birds which are in some cases very similar to native forest. At the same time, birds and insects help to propagate pollen. However, there are so many habitats in the tropics being cleared for agriculture under sun-grown techniques.

Biodiversity --- other extinct animals

Vicious cycle of sun cultivation

Deforestation

Soil erosion +

decreased fertility of soil

Abandon farmland

Exploitation for income

Shade V.S. SunShade-grown coffee

plantations• The majority of bird species

are feeding in the shaded overstorey

• dead leaves from the overstorey trees provide nutrients to the coffee shrubs as they decay. 

• fewer weeds in shade plantations, because fallen leaves from overstorey trees in shade plantations act as natural mulch. 

Sun cultivation• monocultures do not support a diversity

of birds • nutrients are not available, so fertilizers

must be used• Herbicides are needed to control weeds.• Soils are more exposed to the elements,

particularly rains of tropical areas. – more erosion of topsoil, and the

leaching of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides into local watersheds which causes water pollution in the nearby rivers or lakes.

• grow faster and age more quickly than those grown in shade, and therefore must be replaced more often, specifically at about 6 versus 30 year intervals, respectively.

These countries are more likely to grow shade coffee:

• Mexico • El Salvador • Nicaragua • Honduras • Bolivia • Papua New Guinea • Ethiopia

These counties are more likely to grow sun coffee:

• Costa Rica • Brazil • Colombia • Vietnam

What can be done?

• Use composting and other natural methods such as the planting of nitrogen-fixing trees or applications of animal manures. Improve and maintain soil fertility

• Use ecological methods Control pests and diseases

• Provide much refuge for migratory birds and other wildlife • Protect plant diversity by planting different species of native trees. • “Reforesting” or maintaining forested areas• Offering jobs at labor-intensive times such as harvest

- Provide economic security in rural regions• Reducing water use, recirculating water whenever possible, and employing anaer

obic digestion systems to clean water after use - Minimize pollution from coffee processing wastewater• Protect and further a traditional agriculture, building on centuries-old knowledge of far

ming in harmony with nature.• Follow stringent organic standards to produce a quality crop and to meet organic cert

ification requirements.

• The Rainforest Alliance - deals with an array of ecosystem issues such as water conservation, and as well as use of chemicals, community relations, and fair treatment of workers, all organized under ten principals of sustainable agriculture.Criteria include protecting biodiversity in general, and using polycultures.

• Bird-Friendly by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center- coffee is grown under the most stringent environmental standards of any certification system, and is required to be certified organic.- is one of the best assurances that the coffee was grown with biodiversity and sustainability as top priorities.

• Organic certification by the USDA and its accredited agencies- many chemical inputs have been eliminated or reduced.

• Utz Kapeh (now Utz Certified)- environmental standards, but is the least stringent when it comes to biodiversity preservation.

• Setting up law:– The Brazilian Forest Code is a law

that states that in certain areas, a proportion of the land must be permanently preserved for conservation of natural resources and wildlife.

– In the Cerrado, the percentage is 35%.