A major breakthrough by a team of international scientists could help deliver a new Australian brew of coffee.

The team has been pouring its efforts into mapping the genome of Arabica beans – the world’s most widely consumed type of coffee.

The research has been chronicled in peer-reviewed scientific journal Nature Genetics.

“Modern genomic tools and a detailed understanding of the origin and breeding history of contemporary varieties are vital to developing new Arabica cultivars, better adapted to climate change and agricultural practices,” the paper said.

University of Queensland’s Robert Henry, who was part of the team, said the genomic sequencing would help researchers come up with new varieties of coffee in Australia, which produces very little domestically.

“We’ve got the opportunity to think about how we can develop coffees to produce in new environments, including possibly even indoor production in vertical farming in the long term,” he told AAP.

“The real challenge is to find out ways we could produce coffee here in Australia, and that needs to be a high-quality coffee to meet consumers requirements.”

With global coffee supplies threatened by climate change, Professor Henry said it was important for producers to adapt.

“If you look at where high-quality coffee in the world comes from, much of it is produced at high altitude in the tropics,” he said.

“Those environments are being lost at a great rate.

“There is a real need to adapt coffee to future climates and work out how to produce it in the sort of climates we’re going to have available for agricultural production.”

The discovery comes a decade after the researchers mapped the genome of Robusta beans, which has improved coffee breeding for filtered and instant coffee.

The team will next attempt to sequence the coffee genus, by examining more than 30 species globally.

The aim is to find coffee types beyond Arabica and Robusta, which are the two main species.

A wild caffeine-free coffee relative native to Queensland’s Cape York region is one species that will be looked at.

“This study will help us understand how we can incorporate different levels of flavour and aroma, including caffeine, bitterness, and sugar content, to breed high quality coffees that could grow in a wider range of environments,” Prof Henry said.

Liv Casben
(Australian Associated Press)