3) Plant Genetics
How can you make better coffee at home? Well, an easy way is to buy higher quality beans. But, I’m concerned this is going to get harder and harder for you in the future. Climate change is making coffee taste worse while also pushing farmers into financial hardship. In this episode we explore how genetic development can produce a coffee tree that might save the day. Is there a wild coffee tree happily growing in the forests somewhere that could be our silver bullet? What about if we mix existing documented species together? But, the big problem is that genetic research is slow, and farmers can’t wait around. So, in the second half, we learn how coffee farmers in Kenya are trying to fix the problem right now. And I’m actually tentatively hopeful the beans you brew in the morning are not going to get worse. But, it all depends on you, me and the coffee industry making a couple of changes right now. —---Please spread the word about The Science of Coffee!Follow me on Instagram and tag me in an Instagram storyWrite a review on Apple PodcastsLeave a 5 star rating on SpotifyLearn more about how Trabocca, this episode’s sponsor, works with coffee farmersSupport the work of World Coffee ResearchBecome a member of Kew GardensFind some of Alvans Mutero’s and Thiriku’s coffee to taste for yourselfLearn more about cloning coffee plants on my other podcast, Adventures in CoffeeWant to listen to more documentary podcasts about coffee? Check out Filter StoriesConnect with my very knowledgeable guests: Sarada Krishnan - LinkedIn and Research GateAaron Davis - Kew GardensHanna Neuschwander - LinkedInBernard Gichimu - LinkedInLearn more about the coffee varieties discussed on this episode: SL 28SL 34Ruiru 11Batian The Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisations:BWT Water and MoreMarco Beverage SystemsTraboccaEversysOatlyFiorenzatoSubscribe to A History of Coffee podcast