Comets hurtling directly towards planet Coffee

Curated by Peter Friedland 1/3/22 from Roast Magazine/Coffee Dailyl BNews

After a year in which any research that was non-pandemic-related seemed almost quaint, the scientific output largely resumed course in 2021.

In peer-reviewed study after peer-reviewed study, the academic world politely presented the industry with the current or likely effects of climate change, poverty among coffee-farming communities, pests and disease and impending supply chain shocks.

These are the comets hurtling directly towards planet Coffee, and they are real.

Meanwhile, on the sunnier side of the desk, researchers explored post-COVID market dynamics, factors affecting coffee quality, and a reimagined vision of the “Third Place.”

Of course, plenty of research was devoted to coffee’s effects on human health, where some more good news came to light in 2021, particularly regarding the habitual consumption of black coffee.

Below is our annual review of science and market research news stories, broken into three general sections: Sustainability; Market/Quality; and Health.

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[Editor’s note: This feature is part of our ongoing 2021 year-end coverage. Click here for additional stories, updated daily through Dec. 31.]

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Sustainability

Coffee Pulp Dramatically Speeds Up Tropical Reforestation, Research Finds

Researchers from the British Ecological Society reported “dramatic results” over the two year length of the study, which focused on post-agricultural land in the coffee lands of Costa Rica, a global leader in sustainable agriculture.

Climate Change Will Alter the Specialty Coffee Landscape in Ethiopia, Study Shows

Incorporating advanced modeling for climates, topography and soils using specific geographical reference points throughout the Ethiopian coffeelands, the research provides a first-of-its-kind prediction of how specific Ethiopian coffee growing regions will be affected through 2090.

What Researchers Learned from the Remarkable Stenophylla Tasting

More than two years after the rediscovery of what’s being popularly referred to as the “lost coffee species” — formally Coffea Stenophylla — researchers have triumphantly offered a potential gustatory alternative to the arabica coffee species in the face of long-term climate change.