Where Does Your Coffee Come From? Mapping Coffee Farms to Prevent Deforestation
Global coffee producers are teaming up to map coffee plantations around the world using high-resolution satellite images. This initiative aims to ensure that coffee cultivation does not lead to deforestation and meets new European standards. With the help of artificial intelligence, billions of satellite photos are analyzed to identify individual coffee plants and map them out on a global scale, a task that would be impossible to do manually.
In regions like East Africa, where coffee farms are typically small and fragmented, this mapping project is crucial to avoid exclusion of farmers based on inaccurate data. The mapping project, named “Canopée Project,” will be regularly updated and made available for free to producers and governments through an open and transparent geospatial platform.
These efforts are particularly important as new European regulations on deforestation are set to take effect in the next few years. By implementing digital traceability systems and mapping out coffee farms, countries like Ethiopia are preparing to meet these regulations and ensure a sustainable coffee supply chain.
