It’s bean too hot
A new documentary by aspiring filmmaker and photographer Hedvika Michnova has exposed how the climate emergency is having an impact on coffee farmers in Tanzania and Costa Rica – and how smallholders are fighting to reverse the damage.
It’s hard to image a world without coffee. It’s how we start our day, how we meet people, how we relax and re-charge. But the effects of climate change are bringing our consumption of coffee into question.
Climate change is affecting coffee production worldwide. Wild species of coffee as well as the cultivated Arabica coffee are showing sensitivity to changes in temperature, rainfall, pests and disease.
Experts predict that the land suitable for Arabica coffee could decrease to 50% by 2050 – and the Arabica bean is responsible for approximately 70% of the world’s coffee.
It’s estimated that there are 25 million coffee farmers around the world, all of which depend on coffee to maintain their livelihoods. The men and women responsible for the drink are the most important part of the chain, but they’re also the ones that are struggling the most. Adapting to a changing climate requires severe changes in farming and funds that many farmers don‘t possess.It’s a story that Marine and Natural History Photography graduate Hedvika Michnova wanted to tell. Her documentary, It’s Bean Too Hot takes you on a journey around the world, from Costa Rica and Tanzania all the way to your sofa as you drink your morning coffee, unaware of the threats that it‘s facing.
It dives into fully carbon-neutral farms, explores climate-smart agricultural practices being used to adapt to climate change and protect biodiversity, and finds out what drives smallholder families to continue producing coffee.
