Ivory Coast's Presidential Coffee May Soon Become Extinct
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A rare West African coffee variety may soon become extinct.
The arabusta, a hybrid of the better-known robusta and arabica varieties, was developed in the 1960s in Ivory Coast, currently the world’s biggest cocoa producer. Under its first president, Felix Houphouet-Boigny, researchers were told to look for an alternative to robusta, deemed too strong and bitter. The finer arabica needs high altitude and can’t grow in the West African nation.