In Madrid, a team of scientists have sequenced the highest quality reference genome of Arabica coffee, the most popular variety of coffee. This genome has revealed secrets about its lineage, which dates back thousands of years and spans multiple continents. The study, published in Nature Genetics, shows that Arabica coffee originated more than 600,000 years ago in the forests of Ethiopia through the natural crossing of two other types of coffee.
The population of Arabica coffee has fluctuated over thousands of years, influenced by periods of warming and cooling of the Earth. It was eventually cultivated in Ethiopia and Yemen before spreading throughout the world. This culture is essential for large coffee chains such as Starbucks and Tim Hortons. However, due to low genetic diversity and susceptibility to pests and diseases, Arabica coffee can only be grown in certain regions with favorable conditions.
Understanding the origin and cultivation history of Arabica coffee is key to developing new cultivars that are better adapted to climate change. The study used state-of-the-art DNA sequencing technology to sequence 39 species of Arabica, including an 18th-century specimen named by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus. Researchers have created the most advanced Arabica reference genome to date, which is now available in a public database.
Arabica coffee accounts for 60% of the world’s coffee products and has helped people start their day for centuries. Scientists have determined that Arabica coffee arose as a natural hybridization between Coffea canephora and Coffea eugenioides, indicating that this event preceded modern humans and coffee cultivation. The geographical division into wild and cultivated Arabica varieties suggests that coffee cultivation may have originated in Yemen around the 15th century.
Coffee cultivation did not involve extensive cross-breeding like other crops such as corn or wheat. Modern coffee varieties probably date back to ancient times, selected for their taste and cultivated for generations