4 days ago
Australian growers aim for 'specialty coffee' status as price of international beans rises
In homes and cafes around the country, millions of Australians start their day with the same morning ritual: a strong cup of coffee.
Over the decades, the culture has shifted towards quality and specialty blends.
But still only a tiny fraction of the six billion cups of coffee Australians consume each year is produced at home.
Growers believe that can change.
"Australia — and tropical north Queensland specifically — has a lot of the variables needed to grow great coffee," Queensland coffee farmer Jemal Murat said.
"I think the market has a curiosity about what we're doing now, and they can taste it.
"The proof is in the pudding."
Far North Queensland accounts for 85 per cent of Australia's coffee production.
Mr Murat's 70-hectare Arabica coffee farm is in Mareeba, in the Tablelands region.
The Tablelands produces about 800 tonnes of coffee beans a year.
To put it in perspective, Brazil — the world's largest coffee-producing nation — grows almost four million tonnes of beans annually.
"We're not getting ahead of ourselves. The scale of our production is tiny compared to the level of imports Australia receives," Mr Murat said.
The Tablelands grower is working with Griffith University's School of Environment and Science to elevate Australia's domestic coffee industry.
Researcher Dr Fawad Ali believes Queensland could become as renowned for its coffee as southern Australia is for its wine.
"We need to upgrade the coffee industry to the level of the wine industry, where flavours can play a significant role in broadening the market for Queensland-produced coffee," he said.
The project helps local producers improve bean quality to achieve "specialty coffee" status, a shift that could dramatically increase the value of their crop.
Although much of northern Australia is within the global "coffee belt" — between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn — the Tablelands has the rich soil, elevation, and reliable rainfall that's ideal for growing coffee.
Dr Ali is developing new coffee varieties tailored specifically for this region. He's also looking for less resource intensive ways to grow coffee and enhance its flavour.
"We're seeing a serious impact from climate change on major coffee-producing regions around the world, including Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, and Vietnam," he said.
As coffee prices rise, Dr Ali believes improving domestic production could make Australian-grown beans more competitive — especially in the specialty market.
Rod Greenfield is the CEO of a Melbourne specialty coffee roaster that supplies beans to hundreds of cafes around the country.
All their beans come from overseas, but Mr Greenfield can see that changing.
"We've been interested in Australian coffee for a long time," he said.
"I did my first trip to a coffee farm in northern Queensland over a decade ago … realistically, the coffee wasn't specialty enough at that point."
Mr Greenfield's company has been working closely with growers in the project to improve the flavour of their beans.
In March, they showcased a small selection from the Tablelands at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo.
"They blew people away with the flavour of coffee that's now able to be produced in Australia," Mr Greenfield said.
"At that show, we were voted Australia's favourite coffee roaster … and I'm pretty sure that the Australian coffee we showcased had something to do with that."
