|
Comparison of Shade-Grown and Sun-Grown Coffee
|
|
Shade-Grown
Coffee
|
Sun-Grown
Coffee
|
|
Yield
|
Lower (about 25-40 percent)
|
Higher
|
|
Coffee
plants per hectare
|
1,000-2,000
|
3,000-7,000
|
|
Kilograms
of coffee per hectare per year
|
550
|
1600
|
|
Lifetime
of coffee plants
|
24-30 years
|
12-15 Years
|
|
Number
of other crops in same area
|
High
|
Low/none
|
|
Flavor
|
Less bitter
|
More bitter
|
|
Producer
|
Mostly small-scale growers
|
Mostly large-scale growers
|
|
Number
of Bird Species
|
150
|
20-50
|
|
Proportion
of birdlife compared to a normal
forest
|
Two-thirds
|
About
one-tenth
|
|
Number
of mid-sized mammal species
|
24
|
Almost none
|
|
Number
of other plant & animal species
|
more ants, beetles, epiphytes, amphibians,
and other species
|
fewer ants, beetles, epiphytes, amphibians,
and other species
|
|
|
|
|
|
Weeding
needed
|
lower
|
higher
|
|
Chemical
fertilizers
|
lower
|
higher
|
|
Pesticide
use
|
lower
|
higher
|
|
Irrigation
needed
|
lower
|
higher
|
|
Soil
erosion
|
lower
|
higher
|
|
Soil
acidification
|
lower
|
higher
|
|
Toxic
runoff
|
lower
|
higher
|
Data courtesy of the Seattle Audubon Society Shade-Grown Coffee Project
Return to story Good grounds for conservation
|
