Climate requirements for cultivated Liberica coffee ( Coffea liberica ) and consequences for its use and development as a crop species

Societal Impact Statement The global coffee industry, supporting 25 million smallholder farmers, is vulnerable to climate change. Diversifying the coffee species portfolio beyond Arabica and robusta is a promising intervention. Liberica coffee could provide adaptive capacity, although its climate parameters for cultivation are poorly known. This study pioneers climate niche analysis for cultivated Liberica, benchmarking it against its indigenous populations and Arabica coffee. Our analyses show that cultivated Liberica grows in warmer, wetter and less seasonal climates than its wild counterparts and exhibits distinct climate tolerances from Arabica. The results provide intelligence for integrating Liberica as a resource for a climate‐resilient coffee portfolio. Summary To secure the global coffee sector against climate change, diversification beyond the market‐dominant Arabica ( C. arabica ) and robusta ( C. canephora ) could become a critical adaptation strategy for many farmers. This contribution provides the first comprehensive analysis of the cultivated (fundamental) niche of Liberica ( C. liberica ) to identify optimal climate parameters and suitable locations for cultivation. Environmental niche profiling was applied to a global dataset of wild (realised) and cultivated (fundamental) occurrences to quantify climate parameters for this species. This was supported by a species distribution model (SDM) for Liberica in Upper West Africa and an in‐depth analysis of this coffee species in Malaysia, under current and future climate projections. Niche modelling for wild Arabica was used to provide a climate parameter benchmark for wild Liberica. Our research demonstrates that the cultivated climate niche of Liberica extends beyond its wild niche, enabling farming in warmer, wetter and less seasonal climates. Critically, the study reveals that some of the major cultivation areas, such as Sarawak (Malaysia), operate at the edge of the cultivated niche. These findings expand our understanding of key climate parameters for Liberica, providing a data‐driven guide for its integration into farming systems and breeding work. While confirming its promise as a climate‐resilient crop species, realising the potential of Liberica will require targeted research and development to overcome its known agronomic and processing challenges.