Sensitivity and Adaptive Capacity to Climate Change in Organised Coffee Growers in Amazonas, Peru

Smallholder coffee producers in the Amazonas Region, Peru, face increasing climate variability, yet evidence on their sensitivity and adaptive capacity remains limited. This study quantifies both dimensions for organised producers (associations and cooperatives) using a large cross-sectional survey (N = 5473). Composite indices were constructed via polychoric principal component analysis (PCA): items were harmonised to a common direction, standardised (z-scores), and rescaled to 0–1. Average Sensitivity and Adaptive Capacity were intermediate (0.49 and 0.47), indicating moderate overall vulnerability. Group comparisons reveal statistically significant heterogeneity across producer characteristics and territories. Cooperative members exhibit higher Adaptive Capacity than association members (0.50 vs. 0.43), consistent with stronger organisational services and networks; differences in Sensitivity are modest and vary across dimensions. Additional variation is observed by gender, farming experience, and province (Bagua, Luya, Rodríguez de Mendoza, Utcubamba). Post hoc tests (Tukey) indicate where pairwise differences concentrate. The findings prioritise organisational strengthening, targeted financial and technical support, and territorially tailored interventions to enhance resilience. These results inform regional adaptation policies and cooperative-strengthening programmes to improve the climate robustness of smallholder coffee systems in the Amazonas region, Peru.