Climate change likely to dramatically impact rooibos production
The cultivation of redbush, also known as rooibos, is being threatened by climate change in its native country of the Republic of South Africa. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the region is particularly susceptible to changes in climate and its redbush tea industry will be severely affected by extreme weather such as droughts and floods. Local farmers say that if rainfall is delayed even by a month, output may plunge by as much as 50%. In fact, farmers are already struggling to keep crops alive amid droughts and erratic rainfall. One solution that experts suggest is developing of the wild redbush plant, which is more heat resistant and forgiving. Rooibos tea grows exclusively in the region of South Africa and all attempts to cultivate the bush in other, more forgiving landscapes have failed so far.