A new $4 million initiative has been introduced in Australia with the aim of helping the country’s coffee growers increase productivity, test new coffee variants and strengthen biosecurity. Moreover, the Australian Coffee Research program hopes to explore new ways to expand production across Australia’s coffee-growing regions.
The project has been launched by research and development corporation AgriFutures, in collaboration with Southern Cross University, Plant Health Australia, University of Queensland and the Australian Grown Coffee Association. The five-year program is the largest coordinated investment in Australia’s coffee-growing industry to date.
Currently, a mere one percent of coffee consumed in Australia is home grown, despite the fact that Australians drink around two billion cups of coffee every year.
Samantha Beresford, AgriFutures Australia General Manager, Levied and Emerging Industries, put this in perspective by saying, “Australians are among the world’s most passionate coffee drinkers, yet almost every cup we drink starts overseas.”
With that in mind, the program will help coffee farmers by giving them the tools to manage potential risks to crop stability as well as study varieties with the potential to thrive under Australia’s growing conditions.
According to Professor Tobias Kretzschmar, Southern Cross University researcher and program lead, “Australia has ideal conditions for producing premium coffee, but continued growth depends on giving growers access to the best science, varietals, and practical tools.”
As it stands, there are around 40 commercial coffee-growing operations in Australia, occupying around 400 hectares and with the capacity to produce around 800 tonnes of coffee per year. Coffee is grown in tropical Far North Queensland and subtropical southeast Queensland and New South Wales. And while the quality of coffee grown in Australia is high, those involved in the Australian Coffee Research program hope to see a significant increase in production.
As Australian Grown Coffee Association president Rebecca Zentveld puts it, “Consumer demand for Australian-grown coffee continues to increase. Australian growers consistently produce premium coffee, but there’s enormous potential to increase production and strengthen the industry’s competitiveness.”