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World Agroforestry into the Future
(ICCO 2005). There is a similar trend for
oil crops such as coconut (oil is extracted
from the dried kernel – the copra) and,
more recently, oil palm. Natural rubber,
which was a gathered crop in Amazonia at
the end of the 19 th century, is now harvested
from plantations covering more than 10
million hectares worldwide (International
Rubber Study Group 2004).
These crops play a fundamental role in the
economy of many developing countries,
particularly in those that are the least developed
and most heavily indebted. Most
of the crops are bound for the export market
and are an important pillar of overall
growth and rural development. “More than
50 developing countries depend on three
or fewer commodities for more than half
of their export earnings. All heavily indebted
poor countries (HIPCs) depended on
primary commodities for more than
half of their merchandise export earnings
in 1997,” (World Bank 1999). Except for
palm oil, where estates still represent a
significant amount of the planted area,
most of these perennial crops (80–95%)
are grown on small to very small farms
(Gilbert and Ter Wengel 2000; World Bank
2002; International Rubber Study Group
2004).
Some of these crops (e.g. oil palm and coconut)
contribute to food security at both
local and regional levels, while most of
them generate income at the household
level. They also play a major role in generating
foreign exchange at the national level.
In addition, such crops can contribute
to the sustainability of agricultural systems
and, in some cases, play an important role
in the preservation of species and ecosystem
diversity (Ruf and Zadi 1998; Gockowski
2001; Schroth et al. 2004)
With market liberalization and globalization
raising concerns about the sustainable
management of land and other natural
resources, many stakeholders in tree
crop commodity chains are concerned
about the future of their crops. In order
to address these issues there have been a
number of major conferences on the future
of tree crops, some of which looked at a
range of products (e.g. the perennial crops
conference in Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire
in 2001), while others concentrated on
one commodity (e.g. the United Nations
Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD) cocoa conference in 2001,
the International Coffee Organization
conference in Bangalore in 2004, and the
Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil that
hosted its third roundtable in November
2005 [www.sustainable-palmoil.org]).
Other meetings have focused on possible
solutions to land management, which
include agroforestry and forms of certification
and quality zoning approaches (e.g.
presentations at the World Agroforestry
Congress in Orlando, Florida and the
World’s Wildest Coffee event in Nairobi,
Kenya, both in 2004).
This chapter provides a brief overview of
the significance of tree crops to sustainable
development and the relationship between
tree crops and agroforestry systems. It then
reviews the major problems – in some
cases crises – in the main tree crop sectors.
Finally it suggests ways to create more
sustainable tree crop systems, focusing on
how these solutions tie into an agroforestry
research and development (R&D) agenda.
It shows how agroforestry R&D may play
a role either directly (e.g. in improving the
productivity of farming systems) or indirectly
(e.g. through capacity building of farmer
organizations) in tree crop systems.
Tree crops and sustainable
development
Economic importance
Perennial tree crops have become critical
components of many of the national
economies in the humid tropics. Millions
of hectares are planted to cocoa, coffee,
coconut, rubber and oil palm plantations,
mostly in developing countries (Table 1).
Production is calculated in millions of
tonnes; markets are growing and generally
absorb any surges in supply, albeit with
‘booms and busts’ that can and have destabilised
local economies. Geographical
distribution varies depending on the crop:
almost 70% of cocoa is produced in sub-
Saharan Africa; more than half of all coffee
comes from Latin America; and more than
90% of natural rubber, palm oil and coconut
oil is produced in Asia (Table 2).
Tree crops account for a significant percentage
of total agricultural exports in
many countries: in Côte d’Ivoire they
comprise 35%; in Ethiopia 26%; in Ghana
25%; and in Kenya 23%, while in Uganda
they account for a massive 53% of all agricultural
exports. In Uganda, increased
earnings from coffee exports were responsible
for half of the drop in the percentage
of people living under the poverty threshold,
which fell from 54% in 1992 to 35%
in 2000 (World Bank 2002).
The total value of tree crop exports for
Africa amounted to almost US$5 billion
in 2000 (World Bank 2002), including
around US$1.5 billion for Côte d’Ivoire
and US$640 million each for Ghana
and Kenya. The value of global trade in
products such as coffee is considerable.
For instance, the United States imported
US$1.7 billion worth of green coffee in