Possibilities of coffee growing in different systems of agricultural production

Početak kave datira iz Etiopije u 9. stoljeću, a danas rod Coffea uključuje najmnje 124 vrste te je podjeljen u tri podroda, Coffea, Baracoffea i Psilanthopsis. Dvije glavne uzgojne vrste za komercijalnu upotrebu su Coffea arabica L. (Arabica kava) i Coffea canephora A. Froehner (Robusta kava). Sve vrste kave su drvenaste zimzelene te mogu biti uzgajane u obliku prizemnog grma pa do visokih stabala. Kava se uzgaja na 12,5 milijuna gospodarstava diljem svijeta, a najveći proizvođači su Brazil za Arabicu i Vijetnam za Robustu. Dva su glavna sustava uzgoja kave na ,,punom suncu“ i agrošumski sustavi. Uzgoj kave na punom suncu, bez sjenovitih stabala, označava praksu uzgoja kave na otvorenim poljima bez izravnih sjena koje bi prekrivale biljke kave. Agrošumarstvo je zajednički izraz za sustave i tehnologije održivog korištenja zemljišta koje pružaju bioraznolikost i usluge ekosustava. Istraživanja pokazuju da agrošumski sustavi uzgoja kave nude održivo rješenje s brojnim pozitivnim utjecajima na socio-ekonomske i ekološke aspekte. Prema istraživanjima agrošumski sustavi kave ostvaraju veće prinose kave po hektru, ukupne prihode i neto maržu naspram konvencionalnih sustava, kao smanjenje rizika za uzgajivače u vrijeme niskih cijena kave, vremenskih neprilika i slabog uroda uslijed uzgoja i drugih kultura.The origins of coffee date back to Ethiopia in the 9th century, and today the genus Coffea includes at least 124 species and is divided into three subgenera: Coffea, Baracoffea and Psilanthopsis. The two main species grown for commercial use are Coffea arabica L. (Arabica coffee) and Coffea canephora A. Froehner (Robusta coffee). All coffee species are evergreen woody plants and can be grown as shrubs close to the ground to tall trees. Coffee is grown on 12.5 million farms worldwide, with the largest producers being Brazil for Arabica and Vietnam for Robusta. The two main coffee farming systems are "full sun" and agroforestry systems. Full sun coffee farming, without shade trees, refers to the practice of growing coffee in open fields without direct shade to shade the coffee plants. Agroforestry is a collective term for sustainable land use systems and technologies that provide biodiversity and ecosystem services. Research shows that agroforestry systems for coffee production offer a sustainable solution with numerous positive socioeconomic and environmental impacts. According to research, agroforestry coffee systems achieve higher coffee yields per hectare, total revenues, and net margins compared to conventional systems. They also reduce risk to growers during periods of low coffee prices, poor weather, and poor harvests from cultivation and other crops