CCRI developing coffee plant that requires less water

Dr Sooryaprakash Rao, the in-charge director of CCRI said, “Coffee plants require a huge quantity of water. The Central Coffee Research Institute (CCRI) is developing a Robusta coffee plant that survives on less water.”

Speaking at a workshop on the problems faced by the coffee sector following vagaries of nature, on account of International Coffee Day programme organised at the centre on Tuesday, he said, “Arabica coffee plants adjust to the vagaries of nature. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that had conducted a study on temperature had predicted a rise of 0.5 to 1.2 degree celsius temperature by 2020.

Entomologist H G Seetharam said that the CCRI centre has already developed a coffee plant which is resistant to the stem borer disease.

About 3,000 plants have been distributed among 52 coffee growers. More plants will be developed through tissue culture for the growers in the future, he added.

Sahyadri Coffee Growers Association President M R Ranganath said, “Coffee industry is facing a crisis. There are problems from the shortage of labourers to the marketing issues. Youngsters are not showing interest in coffee cultivation. Cases have been booked against those who had cultivated coffee by encroaching the land. There is a need to find solutions to the problems faced by the growers.”

A short film on coffee production, processing and grading was screened on the occasion.