Picking coffee cherries from plants has been both an industry and a way of life in Chiapas, Mexico, for generations. Those who work among the fields now may be the last of their kind, as disease continues to affect the crop, and returns diminish year upon year.
The specific disease which is responsible for the blackening of the leaves visible in this image is coffee leaf rust. It's not only Chiapas which has noticed it; many farms across the south of Mexico and Central America are suffering from the same issue. In some cases, it's reduced the output of coffee leaf crops by half or more, destroying the livelihoods of the people who depend on it. Temperatures have risen in the area in recent years, enabling the fungus responsible for the disease to grow. It used to appear only in crops on lower land; now it's making its way up the hillsides.
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.