Sustainable Western Ghats landscape mosaic through valorisation of coffee

India produces about 4% of the world's coffee, and the district of Kodagu (Coorg) in the Western Ghats produces one third of the Indian coffee in diverse agro-forestry systems. The landscape is made of multi-storeyed plantations of coffee and associated crops (pepper, cardamom), grown in landscapes associated with terraced rice fields and fragments of evergreen rainforests. This landscape mosaic is subject to strong social and ecological dynamics. The forest has been reduced by more than 30% in 20 years because of the development of coffee plantations; the tree cover rich in native species is being progressively replaced by one single exotic tree species, Grevillea robusta In this context, we describe three strategies of adding value to localised products (here, coffee) based on the reputation of the locality and explore their possible links with the conservation of the cultural and biological diversity of the district. The first approach is based on the use of trademarks comprising the geographical name of the district, Coorg. Large corporate coffee estates use them to market their products. The second is based on geographical indications (GIs) widely promoted by the government of India since 2003. There are already GIs on products originating from Coorg (Coorg Green Cardamom and Coorg Orange) but none on its leading product, coffee. The reputation and the historical proofs are already established, but the specifications of the product and the area of production are yet to be defined. In this scenario, the Coffee Board of India could play a leading role, acting on behalf of the interests of the producers. The third strategy deals with environmental certifications. Most of them are only beginning to be implemented in India. This approach rests in the hands of private entrepreneurs, certifying bodies or non-profit organisations, which can be qualified as external stakeholders imposing their norms on the local supply chain. In this paper we propose an analysis of the respective strengths and weaknesses of these three strategies and their possible use for the conservation of the cultural and biological diversity of the district. (Résumé d'auteur