Jamaica: Assessing the Impact of Climate Change on Cocoa and Tomato
Summary
The document examines how changing temperature and rainfall patterns will affect crop suitability in Jamaica by 2050, highlighting significant risks for tomato production and drought sensitivity for cocoa, while suggesting root crops as diversification alternatives.
Key insights
- Tomato productivity in Jamaica is projected to face considerable losses by 2050, driven by a decrease of over 20% in the area suitable for the crop, alongside risks from climate variability, hurricanes, and sea-level rise.
- Cocoa shows high resistance to temperature increases, resulting in small suitability reductions, although the crop remains highly sensitive to drought in the island's drier regions.
- Cassava, sweet potato, and yam are identified as viable diversification options because their climate suitability in Jamaica is expected to persist or increase.
- By 2050, crop suitability is expected to increase primarily in median altitudinal gradients near high mountains, which will likely increase land-use pressure in areas currently used for other crops or forest conservation.
Cite the original document
- APA
- Climate and Development Knowledge Network (2017). Jamaica: Assessing the Impact of Climate Change on Cocoa and Tomato. https://cdkn.org/resource/policy-brief-jamaica-assessing-impact-climate-change-cocoa-tomato
- Chicago
- Climate and Development Knowledge Network. Jamaica: Assessing the Impact of Climate Change on Cocoa and Tomato. 2017. https://cdkn.org/resource/policy-brief-jamaica-assessing-impact-climate-change-cocoa-tomato.
- Wikipedia
- {{cite report |author=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |title=Jamaica: Assessing the Impact of Climate Change on Cocoa and Tomato |date=27 January 2017 |url=https://cdkn.org/resource/policy-brief-jamaica-assessing-impact-climate-change-cocoa-tomato |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}
- BibTeX
- @techreport{climateanddevelopmentknowledgenetwork2017jamaica, author = {{Climate and Development Knowledge Network}}, title = {{Jamaica: Assessing the Impact of Climate Change on Cocoa and Tomato}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2017}, month = jan, url = {https://cdkn.org/resource/policy-brief-jamaica-assessing-impact-climate-change-cocoa-tomato}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }
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