Multisensory Perception of Flavor: Investigating the Role of Cup Color and Weight on Coffee Evaluation

“As I am fond of saying, we taste more than what’s just in the food when we eat: flavor, as I and many other believe, is in the mind.” Assistant Professor of Food Science QIAN JANICE WANG shares the results of a live experiment conducted at Sensory Summit EU in February 2020.

Read More
Ep #2 Exporting - Systems Map Discussion Series

Episode #2 of the Systems Map Discussion Series is all about exporting. Through these conversations we hope to better illuminate the various relationships and gaps in our awareness, ultimately leading to a better understanding of how the entire coffee system works and who it works for.

Read More
Recap #20 | October 22, 2020

Market research and polls continue to try and illuminate the shifting conditions caused by COVID-19: Bloomberg rounds up a variety of market research indicating that the number of coffee shops in the US is set to decline for the first time in the US since 2011, while a recent report from the US National Coffee Association shows that while the pandemic has changed where Americans drink their coffee, there’s a strong desire to return to coffee shops.

Read More
Listen, RecapSCA Staff
Presenting the 2020 SCA Sweden Chapter Committee

SCA members in Sweden cast their ballots in the 2020 elections to select their new leadership. Today, we are pleased to welcome the SCA Sweden Chapter’s new committee.

Read More
Ep #1 Farming & Producing - Systems Map Discussion Series

To dig deeper into the Systems Map and the various connections it explores, we're launching a discussion series organized around the central activities of the map — beginning with farming and processing.

Read More
Announcing A Systems Map Discussion Series

Join us for a brand new discussion series exploring the central activities in the coffee value chain.

Read More
Update on the Candidates for the 2020 SCA Board of Directors Elections

As presented to SCA members on September 1, the SCA Board of Directors, led by President Christina Meinl, has nominated a group of eight professionals from a pool of dozens who responded to our annual call for nominations made in June.

Read More
Live Q&A: The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses

Following up on the video The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses, Professor William D. Ristenpart of the UC Davis Coffee Center will be live for a Q&A on October 15 at 8am PST / 4pm BST.

Read More
Recap #19 | October 8, 2020

Three long-term initiatives were announced on International Coffee Day, including the ICO’s “Coffee’s Next Generation,” the IWCA’s “Empowered Voices,” and the launch of the Coffee Coalition for Racial Equity; Indonesia’s coffee producers are asking for help with financing as the COVID-19 pandemic impacts the demand for coffee; Australian-based Breville Group has acquired the US-based grinder maker, Baratza; a recent feature in Asia Times explores how women entrepreneurs in the Gulf are overcoming the additional hurdles of the pandemic.

Read More
Listen, RecapSCA Staff
Presenting the 2020 SCA Austria Chapter Committee

SCA members in Austria cast their ballots in the 2020 elections to select their new leadership. Today, we are pleased to welcome the SCA Austria Chapter’s new committee!

Read More
Part 4 - How Do I Maximize Safety In My Cafe? - The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses

In the final part of this video, William D. Ristenpart goes in-depth about four things cafes and coffee businesses can do to increase safety. Building on the first three parts of this video that explain how the virus functions, we now look at how masks, increased ventilation, air purifiers, and limited exposure can go a long way to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and increase overall safety.

Read More
Just Published: Brewing Temperature and the Sensory Profile of Brewed Coffee

A new study by researchers at the UC Davis Coffee Center, titled “Brew temperature, at fixed brew strength and extraction, has little impact on the sensory profile of drip brew coffee,” was published today in the prestigious journal Scientific Reports. PETER GIULIANO, Chief Research Officer of the SCA and Executive Director of the Coffee Science Foundation, interviews Professor WILLIAM RISTENPART, Director of the UC Davis Coffee Center, about the newly published article.

Read More
Part 3 - What Controls the Transmission Probability? - The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses

This third segment of the second video in our Community Impact of COVID-19 series dives into the data around COVID-19 transmission probability.

Read More
Part 2 - How Does the Virus Get Into the Air? - The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses

Here we share How Does the Virus Get Into the Air? - Part 2 of The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses. This second segment of the video in our Community Impact of COVID-19 series provides a deeper explanation of the science of airborne transmission of viruses.

Read More
Part 1 - Why Worry About Airborne Transmission - The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses

Here we share Why Worry About Airborne Transmission - Part 1 of The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses. This first segment of the second video in our Community Impact of COVID-19 series gives an overview of the basics of airborne transmission.

Read More
Presenting the 2020 SCA France Chapter Committee

We are pleased to announce that we have received sufficient nominees to fulfill all open coordinator roles to form the SCA France Chapter Committee for the 2020-2022 term. As each of the open committee positions had only one nominee, there is no need to proceed with the usual voting process. However, we would like to give the community the chance to provide comments on the new Chapter Committee before officially concluding this election cycle.

Read More
Community Impact of COVID-19 Episode #2: The Science of COVID-19 Safety for Coffee Businesses

In the second video in our series Community Impact of COVID-19, we’re joined by William D. Ristenpart to look at the science of airborne diseases and how we can use that information to maximize safety while serving coffee and other products.

Read More
How Mexico's Coffee Community Has Dealt With the Pandemic - SCA Community Spotlight

Confinement in Mexico due to the pandemic started in the last week of March 2020, with 80% of the country’s population staying home for approximately three months. Only activities and businesses deemed essential continued to operate.

Read More
Beyond Coffea Arabica: Opportunities for Specialty Coffee with Coffea Canephora

Beyond the current Covid-19 crisis, our industry has known for quite a while that we are facing sustainability issues we need to consider if we want to keep selling specialty coffee in the future. MARIO FERNÁNDEZ, Technical Director of the Specialty Coffee Association, explores the opportunities of specialty C. canephora.

Read More
Read, FeaturesSCA StaffViewpoint
Recap #18 | September 24, 2020

Amid the rise in protectionist trade policies, the International Coffee Organization shared results of a quantitative analysis of trade interventions between 2009 and 2019; coffee berry borer has been discovered on the Hawaiian Island of Kaua’i for the first time; coverage from the UK’s popular press of Neguse Gemeda Mude’s top-scoring lot from the first-ever Ethiopian Cup of Excellence unfortunately focused solely on the per cup price as served by London’s Queens of Mayfair; also recently released: two long-form accounts of challenges facing coffee’s complex value-generating ecosystem and the impacts they’ll have on coffee farmers.

Read More
Listen, RecapSCA Staff