Beans and Brew

Ken Grossman, Co-Founder & CEO, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
Paul Katzeff, Founder & CEO, Thanksgiving Coffee Company
Brad Kintzer, Chief Chocolate Maker, TCHO Chocolate 

Coffee, beer, chocolate – all popular guilty pleasures. However, a warming world could affect our ability to enjoy these delicacies. Changes in microclimates are shifting when and where many crops will grow. Arabica, the most consumed coffee species in the world, could go extinct in the wild within the next 70 years due to warmer temperatures and a deadly fungus. Clean water and high-quality barley and hops are essential to the beer making process – but ample supplies of these ingredients are expected to dwindle in the coming decades. Between 2030 and 2050, a warmer world will dramatically decrease the land suitable for cacao production, and in turn could deal a huge blow to the $9 billion cacao industry.

 

Will these industries be forced to pack up and move their crops to a more suitable region? Can technology insulate crops from climate shocks? Leading local crafters and brewmasters join us to discuss how they’re adapting their businesses in the face of climate volatility.