Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
1. The intercropping of pepper and coffee in Kerala.
Photo by the author.
ing countries.59 As a result of the dissolution of the ICA, coffee production
was deregulated globally, new coffee producers moved into the market,
and low-
quality coffee flooded the international markets. The disso-
lution of the Rupee-Rouble Agreement with the former Soviet Union
aggravated this situation, as Indian farmers were no longer guaranteed
a market in Russia for their coffee.60 India's share of the coffee market
therefore declined.
Given the concurrent reduction in coffee output and price, Kerala's cof-
fee farmers found themselves earning litle to no return on their labor. As
with pepper, coffee no longer provided reliable and sustainable income,
which jeopardized the livelihoods of Kerala's farmers and laborers.
