“The production environments are changing so fast that what we do today is not going to work 30 years from now,” said Hannah Neuschwander, director of communications and strategy, World Coffee Research (WCR). “So, you must have a pipeline that is continuously responding to those changes; the way of doing things in the past where the breeding program dissolves after you get one or three good varieties is no longer going to work.”

By 2030 ,WCR will release 100 new varieties. Currently, there are 119 registered varieties, including Arabica and Canephora varietals. However, there is the capacity to release an additional 100 every three years. “We are continuously taking the best and ditching the worst,” said Jennifer (Vern) Long, CEO of World Coffee Research. The pipeline that we have now activated includes nine government partners. It is going to change the narrative completely.” World Coffee Research has recently introduced speed breeding to allow farmers to add seeds instead of seedlings to their production, significantly reducing transportation challenges that some of the farmers faced with hybrids. The method of speed breeding accelerates the seed cycle, tweaking environmental factors, such as water, light, and temperature, to get a plant that flowers as soon as possible. “We will be releasing 100 candidates
in 2030 that will be available for trialling,” said Long. The intent is to provide farmers with several options to help determine which varietal they want for their production.

Dr Steffen Schwarz, director and founder of Coffee Consulate in Germany, is a passionate collector of coffee species and varietals. Currently, he has over 320 different varieties, from several species of coffee, that he cultivates with colleagues and over 120 in a living collection in a greenhouse in Germany. When exploring coffee, Dr Schwarz stressed the importance of understanding both the industry’s challenges and potential, which includes looking into the possibility of integrating a variety of coffee species into commercial production.

“The challenge we have, which impacts all agricultural crops, is climate change,” said Dr Schwarz. “Anything we’re using now has been adapted to other situations.” In coffee, most of the discussion about resiliency is centred on Arabica. However, he stressed that the coffee industry must also consider the challenges that Canephora faces. “Canephora has 90 percent of its roots in 30 centimetres of the soil, which means it’s super narrow, and if there’s a drought, there is no reservoir that Canephora can connect to.”

The changing climate impacts the microbiome and nutrients in the soil. The different environmental conditions, whether wet, dry, hotter or cooler, change which plants can live in that space. “Plants are not simple organisms. They have an active transport that goes by the microbes and bacteria that move into
it and carry the substances and nutrients into the plant,” Dr Schwarz explained, stressing that by investing the time to understand the various species, and in particular the root system of these plants, the industry can learn both about the resiliency of the plant, while also gaining insight into the flavour profile.

He pointed out that Canephora has a much more narrow, aromatic feel than the Arabica, whose roots go much deeper. “And Liberica’s roots go even deeper, which is why it comes out with wild notes that are incredible, but because it has so much sugar, it ferments,” shared Schwarz, adding, “so if you don’t control it after harvest, ideally within 30 minutes from picking, then you may end up with a coffee that has these strange wild flavours that are due to the uncontrolled fermentation.”

Root research can deepen the understanding of the various coffee species themselves and bring to
light the potential of bringing two species of coffee together through grafting. “One of the reasons we’re interested in root research is we see some really positive benefits from grafting Arabica and Robusta onto Excelsa because of its extensive root system,” said Aaron Davis, senior research leader, Crops and Global Change, Kew Gardens, Sussex, United Kingdom. “If you can swallow the costs of doing it, then grafting could be a viable and useful option for many farmers.”

Digging into Wild Species: Liberica, Stenophylla and Excelsa

Challenges with Robusta and Arabica crops, including pests, disease, and overall resiliency, have resulted in other countries looking at alternative species, specifically Excelsa and Liberica, both of which were planted as border crops to draw out pests. When coffee wilt devastated the Robusta plants in Uganda, shared Davis, the farmers discovered that the Excelsa species were resistant. In India, farmers also found that Excelsa appeared to survive drought episodes. There are several trial plots of Excelsa in Uganda, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, and India. “They needed something that is going to be viable, particularly when they’ve witnessed the drought episodes in Uganda in the last couple of years,” said Davis. “Farmers recognised that these species could help bridge production volumes.”

Excelsa’s growth has been rapid, with Davis’s team working with approximately 250 farms. In Uganda, an additional 100 farms, including cooperatives, are either growing or inquiring about acquiring Excelsa, and the government supports these investments. In South Sudan, approximately 1000 hectares are dedicated to growing Excelsa.

“People are flipping the script when it comes to Excelsa, shifting it from a cheap filler to a priced commodity with the potential of becoming a specialty coffee,” said Michael Mazzotta, co-founder, Excelsa Coffee, San Diego, California. “It’s finally getting the image that it deserves.”

Excelsa Coffee’s online shop, which launched earlier this year, immediately garnered consumer interest and quickly sold out the product. However, it has also resulted in several Excelsa producers from across the globe reaching out, hoping to export their products to America. “One of our biggest challenges is simply lack of consumer awareness and understanding,” said Olin Patterson, co-founder, Excelsa Coffee. “We’ll keep networking, having events and drinking Excelsa every day. We love it, but the reality is it will take several years for the market to understand that there are nuances in coffee.”

Excelsa Coffee can be purchased through several online channels in the United States, including Amazon, Walmart, and social media platforms, with plans to open its retail shop in early 2025. Patterson and Mazzotta are also working with producers in Central America and South Sudan and researchers at UC Davis and the University of Florida to deepen their understanding of Excelsa and its potential as a commercial product.

“Coffee is a very sophisticated field, with so many different varieties, said Dr Carmen Ablan Lagman, researcher and professor at De La Salle University, Manilla, Philippines. “But we are focusing on one group, Arabica, because that’s the high value item.

“Lagman stressed that Liberica, with its unique flavour profile, has the potential of moving into the specialty sector. “What we have to do now is convince [producers] that quality is very important,” said Lagman. “It’s difficult to get from normal to specialty, but then the ROI from that is a huge difference.”

Today, there are at least three substantial producers of Liberica in Malaysia, with production expanding
in the Philippines and India. “In the Philippines, we are not up against coffee versus some other plant or product; we’re talking about coffee versus subdivision or store fronts,” said Lagman. “We have to be strategic in a way that we develop coffee so that the return from doing this is bigger than people buying the land for subdivisions.” This includes considering both the benefits that these species provide, and their limitations.

Understanding the Alternate Species

“There are several intrinsic limitations with Liberica because of the biology of the plant; it has a very thick pulp, it also has very large seeds, and the out-turn from fresh cherry to clean coffee is very low,” said Davis. Left on their own, these plants can grow over 30 feet tall, making it difficult to harvest. Although there are several similarities between Liberica and Excelsa, Davis shared that next-generation sequencing methods confirm that these are, in fact, two distinct species. “They’re different not just on the molecular side, but also on the basic characteristics in terms of seeds, fruits, flowers,” he said.

Kew Research currently has three research projects on Excelsa and Liberica, including one large project focused on genotyping and DNA sequencing work. “I think there will be gains in breeding for both
Arabica and Robusta, with some being more resilient than others.” Davis wants to ensure that farmers have access to other species of coffee, especially when Canephora and Arabica may no longer be an option.

Understanding the story of these alternate species is vital to unearthing the possibilities in coffee and rewriting the coffee landscape. However, the future coffee story does not need to be an ‘either/or’ option; instead, the industry would benefit by considering how these species can become a part of the experience. “What’s really heartening and exciting is that people are really excited about the wild species,” said Neuschwander, “We want all of these species to be explored and utilised, to continue to provide that diversity that makes coffee interesting and an important livelihood option for many people.”

• Anne-Marie Hardie is a freelance writer, professor and speaker based in Barrie, Ontario. She may be reached at: annemariehardie1@gmail.com

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The grant, issued by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI), will support a consortium led by the Synergistic Hawaii Agriculture Council (SHAC).

The five main objectives of the grant include field trials of rust-resistant varieties, surveying spread and identifying field management options for farmers to use to protect existing coffee trees, identifying fungicides or biological control methods to combat CLR, and economic analyses of US-grown coffee from both a growing and a selling perspective. Finally, it will expand genomic research to assist the global coffee industry in understanding and combating the fungus.

“SHAC is pleased to lead this consortium grant, which brings together some of the brightest researchers from around the country,” says SHAC executive director and coffee farmer Suzanne Shriner.

“It is incredible and important to see the U.S. stepping up investment for research on coffee’s most devastating disease,” says WCR CEO Jennifer “Vern” Long. “This work will benefit not only Hawaiian and Puerto Rican growers, but will lead to insights and innovations that impact coffee farmers everywhere.”

Understanding coffee leaf rust genetics has broad relevance for the industry. Included in the grant will be funding to rust expert Prof. Catherine Aime of Purdue University, for the sequencing and assembly of the coffee leaf rust (H. vastatrix) genome, development of methods for genetically identifying rust races, and identification of genes associated with virulence. Such advances could lead to new and cheaper methods of testing for different races of rust, and innovations in managing rust and breeding for rust resistance. Race typing, in particular, is essential for optimally deploying rust-resistant varieties in the field. Incredibly, scientists still don’t know the mechanism that confers rust resistance to resistant varietals. Understanding this could dramatically change prospects for breeding new resistant varieties in the future. The NIFA grant builds on another recently announced grant from the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR), and early support provided by World Coffee Research, showing the increasing relevance and urgency of investing in advanced research to understand one of coffee’s most destructive pathogens. In addition, the Hawaii delegation introduced the Coffee Plant Health Initiative Amendments Act earlier this year that would expand research funding to address all current and emerging threats to coffee plant health, including CLR.

In the shorter term, the grant provides funding to test existing rust-resistant varieties in Hawaii and Puerto Rico. Both will join the WCR International Multilocation Variety Trial (IMLVT). The trials will be managed by USDA. As with other countries participating in the IMLVT network, local scientists, growers, and industry members will jointly evaluate the agronomic and quality performance of varieties. Trial participants can negotiate for access to conduct additional research and possible commercialisation of promising varieties.

“Testing these international varieties gives our growers a leg up on finding long-term solutions that work in the field,” says Shriner. “And in the immediate term, applied research will help maintain non-resistant tree health and support the agricultural economies of our islands.”

The coordinated research programme funded by the NIFA grant will be conducted by various entities, including the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Daniel K Inouye US Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center (DKI-US-PBARC), the ARS Tropical Agriculture Research Station (TARS) in Puerto Rico, University of Hawaii, University of Puerto Rico, as well as Purdue University and Michigan State University.

The October 2020 discovery of coffee leaf rust on Maui island has galvanised US coffee growers to advocate for increased funding to fight the threat. Up until last year, rust was present in every coffee growing region of the world except Hawaii. Spread of the fungus is difficult to control and if left untreated can result in more than 70% yield loss.

Upon learning of detection of CLR in Hawaii last year, Senators Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz, Congressman Ed Case, and former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard sent a letter to then-USDA Secretary Perdue alerting him to the situation and requesting swift federal assistance with early detection and rapid response. In a statement accompanying the announcement, Hawaii Sen. Hirono said, “Over the past year our more than 1,400 coffee growers in Hawaii have been dealing with one of the greatest threats to their industry. This funding will help bring together leading experts in coffee research to protect one of our most iconic crops, so coffee can continue contributing to our local economy and culture.”

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Michael Keown, chair of the WCR board of directors, said: “Vern is joining WCR at a time of strong momentum. What was once a fledgling organization has surpassed everyone’s expectations and created a capacity we now recognize the coffee industry can’t do without.  We are thrilled to welcome her and look forward to all that’s to come.”

Dr. Tim Schilling, the founder and outgoing chief executive officer of WCR, will work side-by-side with Long through the end of the year, then step into a new role as president of WCR’s European subsidiary branch and a member of the board of directors. Long will take the helm of WCR on June 1 2019.

“With Vern, WCR is in exceptionally capable hands,” said Dr. Schilling. “She is deeply knowledgeable and passionate about international agricultural research, is a natural leader and entrepreneurial thinker, and is an experienced organization builder. She’s the perfect fit. The coffee world doesn’t know her yet, but it will.”

Long will lead the organization to achieve its mission to grow, protect, and enhance supplies of quality coffee while improving the livelihoods of the families who produce it. WCR aims to achieve stable funding of $10 million by 2022.

“I am humbled and excited to join an organization as dynamic, focused, and innovative as World Coffee Research. Coffee production faces numerous challenges in the coming years, which agricultural research and development are uniquely positioned to address. I am eager to build on Tim’s success in establishing WCR as one of the leading coffee organizations in the world,” said Long. “I look forward to engaging across the coffee community to grow WCR, so together we can position coffee production to be sustainable in the long term, particularly for the farmers who make the business of coffee possible.”

“Our industry likes to talk about sustainability a lot. But in World Coffee Research, we have brought into being a global organization that is charging ahead to address some of the fundamental problems stopping us from achieving it, especially low profitability for farmers,” said Mario Cerutti, president, ECF/chief institutional relations and sustainability officer, Lavazza. “Farmer-focused agricultural innovation is fundamental. We cannot be a sustainable industry in the long term without it. It is why so many international companies, like Lavazza, have joined this precompetitive effort. We are so excited to watch this organization grow to realize its full potential under Vern’s leadership.”

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