This study analyzes the multiscalar interactions of the emerging carbon market and the social, environmental, and economic implications it may hold for small-scale landholders in the tropical rainforest. Based on a change detection analysis from a case study in Costa Rica, this report argues that 1) the scalar mismatch between national carbon trading markets and small scale agroforestry sequestration efforts is driven by insignificant land holdings; 2) secondly, the scalar mismatch limits the small scale landholders’ access to the carbon market; and 3) that in order to link global and local approaches to climate change we need to understand the local economic contexts within which these global markets are interacting. / text

In this research, physicochemical changes that took place during roast processing of coffee beans using fluidized air roaster were studied. The results showed that high-temperature-short-time resulted in higher moisture content, higher pH value, higher titratable acidity, higher porous structure in the bean cell tissues, and also produced more aldehydes, ketones, aliphatic acids, aromatic acids, and caffeine than those processed at low-temperature-long-time process. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and chemometric analysis showed that clusters for principal components score plots of ground coffee, extracted by a mixture of equal volume of ethyl acetate and water, were well separated. The research indicated that variations in IR-active components in the coffee extracts due to different stages of roast, roasting profiles, and geographical origins can be evaluated by the FTIR technique. / Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NESRC) and Mother Parkers Tea & Coffee Inc.

This study seeks to explore the conditions under which producer cartels organized by primary producing countries to increase real external purchasing power (income terms of trade) can most effectively achieve their objectives. / To this effect, conventional cartel theory is expanded so as to include the impact of the major institutional factors, with emphasis on centre-periphery (North-South) relationships, the roles played by governments of producing and consuming countries, by transnational enterprises as well as the particular conditions of supply and demand of various commodities. This framework is applied to bauxite, coffee and sugar industries, because each presents unique characteristics. As a principal focus of this study, a comparative analysis of these commodities is undertaken. / The analysis demonstrates that a bauxite cartel has the potential to gain large monopoly profits, but the evidence is against the long run profitability and stability of coffee and sugar cartels. The differences in the characteristics of the primary commodities differentiate the behaviour of cartels and the expected outcomes. Ultimately, the benefits of successful cartels will have to be measured by how the financial gains are used to transform internal structures, eliminate poverty, and promote social justice. As well as being useful for the study of primary commodity cartels in general, this analysis can also aid policy makers concerned with producer cartels.

Attending to the felt quality of experience, this work looks at how a community of Mexican campesinos go about thew life While cultivating coffee, trying to make sense of how villagers feel, know, and understand the world "on their own terms". The aim is to work through (and from) the plane of the body, a narrative strategy that seeks to convey some of the give an take of everyday life; the joy and salubrity that are often bounded in moments of good health, the sorrow and pain that poverty entails. But since "well being" is not "culture five" but guided by moral and aesthetic constraints, I map out the cultural "building blocks" to see how local notions of health and illness tie into feelings of integrity or fragmentation. Last, we look at what social ideals underscore notions of personhood and how these shape local experiences of land.

Shade tree incorporation is beneficial in coffee cropping systems under sub-optimal conditions. This study was performed in lowland Costa Rica, at a 12-year-old experimental coffee farm. The main objective was to compare the effect of a nitrogen fixing shade tree, Erythrina poeppigiana, on nutrient availability in the rhizosphere of coffee under conventional fertilization. Accumulation of nutrients (mineral N, available P, and exchangeable base cations) in rhizosphere relative to bulk soil was greater under shade than full sun. Low nitrate availability in rhizosphere soil of full sun coffee was explained by root-induced acidification relative to bulk soil, as abundance of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), which mediate nitrification, were positively correlated with pH. Organic fertilization enhanced AOB abundance and altered soil bacterial community structure relative to conventional fertilization. This study indicates clear effects of shade-tree presence on nutrient availability at the micro-scale, management of which is critical for stability of coffee agroforestry systems.

Shade tree incorporation is beneficial in coffee cropping systems under sub-optimal conditions. This study was performed in lowland Costa Rica, at a 12-year-old experimental coffee farm. The main objective was to compare the effect of a nitrogen fixing shade tree, Erythrina poeppigiana, on nutrient availability in the rhizosphere of coffee under conventional fertilization. Accumulation of nutrients (mineral N, available P, and exchangeable base cations) in rhizosphere relative to bulk soil was greater under shade than full sun. Low nitrate availability in rhizosphere soil of full sun coffee was explained by root-induced acidification relative to bulk soil, as abundance of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), which mediate nitrification, were positively correlated with pH. Organic fertilization enhanced AOB abundance and altered soil bacterial community structure relative to conventional fertilization. This study indicates clear effects of shade-tree presence on nutrient availability at the micro-scale, management of which is critical for stability of coffee agroforestry systems.

This thesis is concerned with the use of natural waste materials, specifically used tea leaves and coffee grounds, as adsorbents for the removal of trace metals from water, e.g. in waste water treatment. Trace metals such as lead, mercury, zinc, copper, nickel and cadmium are released to the environment in waste water as a result of human activities, and generate concern because of their potential toxicity, persistence and tendency to become concentrated in food chains. While there are many conventional methods for removing these metals from waste water, such as chemical precipitation, ion exchange, membrane technologies and electrochemical treatment, these processes can be expensive. Thus in recent years there has been increasing interest in low cost adsorbent materials as alternative adsorbents, particularly waste natural products such as rice hulls and spent coffee grounds. Most of the research reported in this thesis has been conducted with spent coffee grounds, both grounds produced by leaching of commercial ground coffee and spent grounds obtained from the manufacture of instant coffee. However, some preliminary work was also conducted using spent tea leaves. In the initial work, the adsorption of the metal ions Cu�⁺, Zn�⁺, Cd�⁺ and Pb�⁺ by these adsorbents was investigated using batch adsorption methods to determine the effects of pH, metal ion concentration, adsorbent concentration and other factors such as temperature and metal ion competition. The competitive effects of soluble material leached from the adsorbents that also bind metal ions were studied. The adsorption of the metal ions was found to follow the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. However, the maximum adsorption density was found to depend on the concentration of coffee adsorbent present. Further investigation indicated that this was a result of flocculation of the coffee solids, which acted to reduce the available surface area and thus the maximum density of adsorption sites. This was confirmed using a dispersant to break up the flocculated solids. Column adsorption studies showed that metal ions adsorbed by coffee grounds could be quantitatively leached in dilute acid solution without any loss of subsequent adsorption properties, thus promoting efficient re-use of the column for many adsorption cycles. The adsorbent was also found to be largely unaffected by biological degradation. A prototype waste water treatment column was used to treat tap water samples, with and without known additions of metal ions. The results showed that the grounds efficiently adsorbed trace metal contaminants at levels as low as [mu]g L⁻�. The acid base chemistry of both tea leaves and coffee grounds, and the soluble materials leached from the fresh tea and coffee, were studied using potentiometric titration. In addition the stoichiometry of H⁺ released during metal ion adsorption was also investigated. The latter results indicated that the stoichiometry of metal ion adsorption is not simple, i.e. it probably involves more than one type of adsorption site. The results of this thesis suggest that the use of waste coffee grounds shows considerable promise for the treatment of waste water containing trace metals, and provides an alternative commercial use for such exhausted coffee materials.

The objectives of studies undertaken here were to identify the species of Colletotrichum associated with coffee berry anthracnose in PNG, gain an understanding of the infection process and factors affecting it, assess the impact, if any, of anthracnose on coffee quality and identify suitable chemicals for anthracnose control. A total of 40 isolates were collected from PNG and their cultural and morphological characteristics on PDA were studied and used to identify the species. Species identification was further confirmed by molecular characterisation using RFLP and DNA sequencing of the ITS region of the rDNA. After species identification only two isolates were selected to represent C. gloeosporioides and C. acutatum for further studies. Studies on conidia germination and the effects of conidia concentration, temperature, relative humidity and pH affecting germination were done on TWA, followed by studies on the infection process on coffee berries and the influence of temperature on germination and appressoria formation in vivo. For assessment of effect of anthracnose on coffee quality, 100 samples of ripe berries were assessed for disease incidence, followed by processing of the berries to green bean and data on bean defects (black bean) together with anthracnose incidence subjected to appropriate statistical analysis. A similar procedure was followed using disease severity but the samples were from one farm only. The closing work on chemical control was done by screening 16 different fungicides for the control of C. gloeosporioides and C. acutatum. With the 40 isolates, 29 were identified as C. gloeosporioides and 11 as C. acutatum. This is the first report of C. acutatum on coffee in PNG. Identification of the species was further confirmed by RFLP groupings where C. gloeosporioides and C. acutatum were separated at 574bp and 584bp respectively and DNA sequence homology identified the PNG isolates with C. gloeosporioides and C. acutatum accessions. Optimum conditions for conidia germination in relation to spore concentration, temperature, and pH are 1 x 106 spores/ml, 21 - 29°C and pH 5 - 7 respectively for C. acutatum and for C. gloeosporioides 1 x 106 spores/ml, 25 - 31°C and pH 5 - 7 respectively. Humidity is not a limiting factor for activity of both species. Infection process for both species is similar where conidia germinate to produce the germ tube which swells at the tip to form the appressoria. The appressoria produce an infection peg which is responsible for berry cuticle penetration and cell colonisation (resulting in typical anthracnose symptom expression) and eventual sporulation. C. acutatum has not been reported elsewhere as a pathogen of coffee and this is the first report of C. acutatum causing infections on both ripe and mature green berries. Anthracnose incidence did not correlate well with coffee bean defects, but anthracnose severity v suggested that coffee quality could be affected by anthracnose. The most effective fungicide for anthracnose control is thiram alone or thiram alternating with propiconazole.

Genetic consistency within varieties is essential to quality assurance for any agricultural product. While the Australian coffee industry targets high quality coffee, there is observed morphological variation within coffee varieties in New South Wales plantations. This variability may result from environmental, genetic and/or management factors. Genetic factors can be tested by molecular markers which can also shed light on the questions concerning crop quality management. A review of the literature showed low genetic variation in C. arabica. Hence four different molecular marker systems were used in this study to detect possible genetic variation within and between varieties of local coffee grown in Northern New South Wales (NNSW), Australia. Genetic variation in eighty-four seed propagated coffee (C. arabica) accessions, mainly from two commercial varieties (K7 and CRB) in NNSW, were tested using various PCR-based marker systems (RAPDs, ISSRs, SSRs and AFLPs). Eleven accessions from Central Highland, Vietnam, were used as reference material. While RAPD and ISSR did not distinguish intra-varietal molecular variation, SSR and AFLP data revealed the degree of genetic variability and the relationship among individuals within and between coffee varieties. Despite observed morphological variation within supposedly single variety plantations in NNSW, the genetic variation, measured by genetic distance, revealed in this study was very low (K7: 0.193; CRB: 0.205). There exists genetic variation between different farms sharing the same cultivar (K7) which suggests differences in the management of plantation establishment and sourcing of trees. The genetic variability is not aligned with off-type individuals observed in K7, but is with off-type CRB plants which is probably due to inter-varietal hybrids from unintentional outcrossing. The mean level of genetic identity between cultivars derived from the two distinct types of C. arabica is moderate (0.641). Although genetic variation within and among arabica cultivars is low, sufficient DNA polymorphism was found among some C. arabica accessions to allow differentiation. The results in this study suggested that even the elite cultivars, which have been exposed to intensive selection, still show a certain degree of genetic variation amongst individuals within each cultivar even though C. arabica is a predominantly selfing species and has a narrow genetic foundation. The congruence between AFLP and SSR data sets suggests that either method individually, or a combination, is applicable to genetic studies of coffee. SSR alone clearly distinguished and revealed inter-varietal heterogeneity but were more powerful when combined with AFLP.

Thesis (M.A.) -- University of Adelaide, Dept. of History, 2001. / Bibliography: leaves 166-173.