[[{“value”:”Image: University of California, Davis
The opening of a new Coffee Centre at University of California, Davis marks a pivotal moment in coffee science, research, and education.
There’s a long-running joke that you don’t need to go to university to work in coffee. Most people in the industry will tell you plenty of coffee careers entail years of study and knowledge, yet the opening of a new wing of the University of California, Davis is working to formalise coffee education and finally put the assumption to bed.
The new Coffee Centre, which opened in May 2024 at the university in Northern California, United States (US), is the first academic research and teaching facility dedicated to the study of coffee in the country. Coffee has been the subject
of many studies over the years, yet, in comparison to other areas of agriculture, there’s a lot more to be learnt about the plant, its use, and the secret to preparing the perfect cup.
According to Coffee Centre Co-Director and Chemical Engineering Professor Bill Ristenpart, the aim of the new facility is to bring more credibility to coffee research and inspire more scientists to explore the agronomy product, with a goal to benefit the coffee supply chain – from farmers to roasters and baristas.
“Having a better scientific understanding of coffee is going to help the entire industry and community,” says Ristenpart.
The 7000-square-foot cross-department centre is a hub of research activity in areas across pre- and post-harvest coffee. It features experimental green bean storage; espresso, brewing, sensory, and cupping laboratories; a chemical and analytical laboratory; and a pilot roastery.
“We currently have around 30 to 40 faculty members on campus who are associated with coffee research, all in different departments – from food science to law. The Coffee Centre serves as a nexus to bring all the disciplines together in one place,” Ristenpart says.
“Everything you need to advance coffee research is now under one roof. And it’s not just a resource for me and the team at UC Davis, but for anyone who wants to come here and use the facilities to conduct research.”
Q Grader Tim Styczynski has recently joined the Coffee Centre team as Head Roaster, and will advise on green coffee acquisition and storage, provide expertise in roast profiles and education on roasting practices, facilitate with the various brewing methods undertaken for research purposes, and assist with sensory sciences projects.
“We can’t know what works and what doesn’t without research,” he says.
“We have enjoyed coffee for centuries, but it’s only more recently academic research has explored it. The facility’s purpose and its work are an inspiration to universities and professionals alike. That the Coffee Centre will encourage people around the world to do the work they love, and which needs to be done, will have tremendously beneficial impacts to the coffee industry, as well as other fields of study.”
Probat donated four custom-designed roasters to the Coffee Centre, including two electric Probat P01s and two gas P05s, which will be used in a variety of research projects and for educational purposes.
Styczynski says all the research undertaken at the new centre will have the common goal of producing the best possible coffee.
“My hope is that we always strive for a better cup. Not just a cup that is better in quality, but better responsibly and sustainably, and inspires a greater appreciation of the complexities of coffee production,” he says.
The ribbon cutting may have only taken place on 3 May, yet Ristenpart and his colleague Tonya Kuhl have studied coffee through an academic lens at University of California, Davis for over a decade.
In 2012, Ristenpart and Kuhl were discussing how to improve their senior- level chemical engineering unit over a coffee, which sparked an idea. Kuhl suggested getting students to reverse engineer a cup of coffee, and from there The Design of Coffee course was established. The first year saw 18 students enrol; by the 2023/2024 academic year, that number had risen to more than 2000.
“What began as a first-year seminar and a truly unique way to teach chemical engineering has grown into a dynamic and innovative environment where we are advancing coffee science research, teaching, and mentorship,” says Dean of Engineering Richard Corsi.
Due to the success of the course and his ambition to further coffee research, in 2016 Ristenpart started seeking philanthropic funding for the Coffee Centre and to date has raised US$4.5 million of the US$6.2 million target. The facility also received support from industry partners such as La Marzocco and Probat, which donated equipment.
“The level of research conducted by this multidisciplinary institution truly amazes me,” says Probat CEO and President Wim Abbing, who was present at the official opening event.
“We have supported the team at the Coffee Centre because they are dedicated to the needs and challenges of the coffee industry, just like Probat. We share the vision of an improved and sustainable coffee sector with equal opportunities.”
Image: University of California, Davis
Ristenpart stresses that the state-of-the-art facility is useless without good people.
“Supporting students is a huge element we need help with – not a single dime of that US$6 million figure goes towards the funding of the students or the research. Many of our projects are funded by industry partners, such as Probat,” he says.
The roaster manufacturer is currently supporting PhD candidate Laudia Anokye- Bempah, who is researching the kinetics of coffee roasting.
“Our ultimate goal is to design a Coffee Roasting Control Chart that will be used to produce desired attributes in roasted coffee,” says Anokye-Bempah.
“In the first phase of the project, we roasted three different green coffees using seven different roast profiles and collected over 1000 samples for further analysis. We did all the roasting before the renovations. Because we didn’t have the appropriate labs and equipment at the time, we had to transport our samples to other labs on campus for further processing. Now we have an analytical lab, and [thanks to] all the equipment and facilities at the Coffee Centre, we will be able to conduct our experiments and sample analysis there.”
With the Coffee Centre taking almost eight years to complete from concept to grand opening, Ristenpart has a never- ending list of future research ideas he’s eager to undertake.
“There are so many things we still don’t understand about coffee,” he says.
“One thing we’re particularly interested in right now is a proposal we’re putting together about green sorting defects. Currently, there’s very little hard data to back up any of the equivalencies in the coffee grading systems, so we want to decipher rigorous detection thresholds.”
Ristenpart and the University of California, Davis team are keen to share their knowledge and research with
the industry, and there are plans for professional coffee education courses.
“My long-term goal is to use the centre for more advanced education. Undergraduate and graduate education is important, but I also want to focus on professional education for people already in the industry.”
This article was first published in the July/August 2024 edition of Global Coffee Report. Read more HERE.
The post University of California, Davis opens dedicated Coffee Centre appeared first on Global Coffee Report.
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