STiR coffee and tea magazine

STiR coffee and tea 27 the cup," said Coffeelab's Menon. All the panelists agreed on this point — that understanding varietals is a key to success in robusta production. Learn the taste profile for each cultivar and ask yourself what type of pro- cessing you'd use for it. Yet many producers remain little aware of robusta's range of varietals. Opportunities and potential Education will increase robusta's prospects, according to several participants. It's about better informing not just the consumer but everyone along the supply chain. This will help develop and diversify the market and the capabilities of suppliers. Robusta-producing countries should work to encourage greater consumption in the local market. That way more of the added value can stay in the domestic economy, as it already does in places like the Philippines and Indonesia, said Davila-Her- meling. Offering robusta of higher quality in the local market is a good way to support this process, which will benefit growers. Juan agreed: "In the Philippines, the doubling of prices for the farmer has done wonders in farm expansion and people are getting interested in not only expanding farms, but adding value. So there's a lot of cafes, roadside kiosks, especially with the pan- demic, and a lot of people growing at home." One survey among specialty roasters showed that 20% are using robusta already — but they don't talk about it and aren't proud of it. At the same time, many are open to try fine robusta, if the price is right, Labin said. Roasters often complain they don't know how to roast robus- ta or have never even tried to. Producers need to overcome this obstacle to market their beans. One way is to learn from roasters in countries where robusta is esteemed, like the Philippines. Sharing your know-how will support education, said Davila Hermeling. "We tend to underestimate the power of collective knowledge here. Nobody knows it all. Learn something new and share it with others. There's a big community in Facebook fo- rums for producers, roasters, etc." The successful marketing of arabica over the past three de- cades offers valuable lessons from throughout the world that can help in promoting robusta. As Davila-Hermeling put it, there's no need to reinvent the wheel. "Put yourself out there with your robusta and share the sto- ry. There's no need for a fancy website. Just tell what needs to be told," she said. Europe is a good market to start, said Labin. "People are used to robusta. It's embedded in the coffee culture, and it's an essential part of the blends." Consumers are more open to try robusta, and European roasters have already contributed to spreading the word about it. This message is now reaching other countries, including the U.S. "Think about what makes sense in your business. Is it a good investment? Growing robusta is all about profitability, too," she said. Fears that robusta will someday displace arabica are mis- placed. Better to think about the benefits of increasing its role. "It's possible that certain volumes of arabica will be replaced by robusta," said Labin. "But in general, it's adding more value for the producing countries." See Coffee Report, page 14, "Robusta Variety Catalog."

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