750020Coffee - Microbial AssessmentClosedVouchersInnovate UKTo develop a robust tool to scientifically prove coffee type and provenanceCoffee is grown at altitude between the tropics and there are two broad types - Arabica and RobustaTypically Arabica is highly valued for flavour, Robusta tends to have a harsher basic taste profile.The international coffee market is big and growing Consumption +2% / Value +5 % paAnnually 135 m 60 kg bags of raw coffee, is produced in approximately 100 origin countriesThis values the raw coffee market at c 30 B USD $However, a precise valuation is difficult, because every original coffee has a different priceThis price variation is called the differential.It is a premium which reflects supply/ demand and also perceived coffee qualityEG - Good quality Kenyan coffee could have a differential of $2 / Lb. So if the terminal market price is $2 / Lb a Kenyan would cost $4 Conversely, a low grade Brazilian could have a differential of – 25 c / lb. So on the same market the Brazilian coffee would cost $1.75We also have a market which is dynamic and erratic and which recently hit 25 year price highsSo in a competitive environment the skill of the coffee blender has become increasingly importantThe coffee blender can chose from many coffees, and mindful of the impact of the differential has developed what are called Flavour Families (FF)These are baskets of original coffees, which share very similar visual, taste and performance characteristicsOriginally, FF were developed to deliver consistent product through the harvest cycleHowever they are now used to deliver like for like product at lower costThe fact remains that 95% of the time even expert coffee tasters will be unable to identify coffees and recipe nuancesThere is no known method to scientifically confirm authenticity and provenance of 'mainstream' coffee productThe industry and consumer would benefit considerably from such toolsThe premise of this application is that original coffees could be identified via Microbial assessment