Established as World Margarita Day, February 22 can also serve as a reminder that in order to continue enjoying it, we must protect its main ingredient, tequila, as well as its main pollinator, the climate-threatening bat. a crisis.

A cocktail with tequila or mezcal as the main ingredient is considered one of the most popular and classic in the world.

However, scientists warn that water shortages, or at best water shortages caused by climate change, will continue to pose a threat to food, wine and spirits production.

A 2019 study found that the climate crisis, combined with overgrazing and other human activities, could disrupt the cultivation of agave, a key ingredient in tequila, and mezcal.

Although the agave is a drought tolerant plant that can grow in extreme heat without water, its life cycle is extremely sensitive to extreme weather fluctuations caused by a climate crisis, such as the one recently experienced in California, from severe drought to killer floods, explains Omanjana Goswami. , nutritionist and ecologist.

“Agave is a desert plant, so any weather conditions that resemble desert conditions favor its growth. Unfortunately, however, climate impacts are not linear. This does not mean that because the increase in temperature is recorded, it will remain constant, ”she says.

Bats under threat

However, the climate crisis threatens not only the agave, but also its pollinators.

Bees, butterflies and bats pollinate about 30% of the food that falls on our table. Like birds, bats help disperse seeds, among other things. However, as global temperatures rise, weather patterns are becoming more extreme, affecting these important pollinators, in particular the bat species native to Mexico, which play a key role in tequila production.

“Without bats, you don’t have tequila because they are the only ones that pollinate the agave that makes tequila,” explains wildlife expert Ron Magill.

There are hundreds of varieties of agave, however, by law, tequila is distilled exclusively from blue agave (Weber Azul) mainly in the Mexican province of Tequila – and in a few other specific regions. Drinks made from agave elsewhere, such as California, may simply be referred to as agave alcohol.

Source: CNN