Food things you should know

Nestlé's plant scientists and agronomists have developed a new high-yield Arabica coffee variety called "Star 4", which is not only more resistant to coffee leaf rust, but also helps to increase plant productivity. By improving farming methods through "regenerative agriculture", it can significantly reduce the carbon footprint of coffee beans.

Written by Wu Zhiling

Nestlé develops new Arabica coffee variety with increased resistance to leaf rust

In 2021, Nestlé, a world-renowned food company , developed two Robusta varieties, Roubi 1 and 2, through non-GMO breeding technology, which can increase yield by 50% and reduce carbon emissions by 30%, and are currently promoting them in Mexico.

In 2024, Nestlé's plant scientists and agronomists developed a new high-yield Arabica coffee variety called "Star 4". The new variety is characterized by larger beans and higher resistance to leaf rust, while maintaining the flavor of Brazilian coffee beans.

Leaf rust is a fungal disease that caused a large-scale epidemic in 2012 and has a strong destructive power on the coffee industry. Among them, Arabica coffee, which accounts for nearly 70% of the world's coffee production, is less resistant to high temperatures than other coffee varieties (such as Robusta) and is more susceptible to this disease. (Image source: Wikipedia)

Two Keys to Reducing Coffee's Carbon Footprint: Improving Plant Productivity and Farming Practices

Coffee is one of the foods with the highest carbon emissions in the world, second only to red meat such as beef and lamb, cheese and dark chocolate. The coffee cultivation process accounts for the largest share of greenhouse gas emissions, and the carbon footprint of raw beans accounts for 40% to 80% of the total carbon emissions of a cup of coffee. Marcelo Burity, head of Nestlé Green Coffee Development, emphasized: "Optimizing the cultivation process is crucial because they are the main factor that determines the impact of a cup of coffee on the environment." This means that the key to reducing the carbon footprint of coffee beans is to increase plant productivity and improve farming methods.

The key to sustainable production is to produce more coffee with the same unit of land, fertilizer and energy inputs, and the first plantings of the new variety Star 4 were tested in two traditional coffee growing regions in Brazil, Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais. Jeroen Dijkman, Director of the Nestlé Agroscience Institute, said: "Field trials have shown that with similar inputs, Star 4 has significantly higher yields than the two most commonly used local varieties in Brazil, thereby reducing the carbon footprint."

Nestlé continues to take CSV (Creating Shared Value) as the core of its business and fulfill its corporate social responsibility. According to Nestlé's latest sustainability report, Nestlé's greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 will be reduced by 13.58% compared to 2018. (Image source: Nestlé Creating Shared Value and Sustainability Report 2023 )

Promoting "regenerative agriculture" and improving overall cultivation quality will help reduce carbon emissions

In October 2022, Nestlé announced an investment of 1 billion Swiss francs to promote the Nescafé Plan 2030, hoping to help farmers cope with climate change through regenerative agriculture. Regenerative agriculture aims to improve soil health and fertility while protecting water resources and biodiversity. Healthy soil can also better resist the impact of climate change and increase production, helping to improve farmers' livelihoods.

Therefore, Nestlé provides farmers with training, technical support and high-yield coffee seedlings to help them switch to regenerative farming methods, such as planting cover crops and using organic fertilizers, which all help improve soil health, further increase yield and quality and reduce carbon emissions.

The "Nescafé Plan 2030" provides farmers with practical assistance such as optimizing fertilizer application, renovating farms, and establishing riverbank buffer zones, hoping to achieve the vision of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, increasing farmers' income, and creating better social conditions by 2030. (Photo source: Nestlé official website)

Nestlé's goal is to have 20% of its coffee come from regenerative agriculture by 2025 and increase to 50% by 2030. In addition, Nestlé has also pledged to reduce carbon emissions by 20% in 2025, 50% in 2030, and achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Studies have shown that by 2050, the amount of land suitable for growing coffee worldwide may decrease by more than 50% due to the climate crisis. Therefore, Nestlé’s experts are constantly using scientific data and artificial intelligence to try to cultivate more resilient varieties to cope with the threat of climate change to coffee cultivation, while also ensuring a stable coffee supply chain.

As the world's largest fast-moving consumer goods coffee brand, Nestlé's innovation is particularly important. This innovation continues to promote the practice of sustainable agriculture and ethical sourcing. Nestlé has also cooperated with the Brazilian Foundation "Procafé" and has successfully registered this new Arabica variety, moving towards stable planting and production in the future.

Review Editor: Lin Yuting