ASIC Mission
ASIC's main objectives - as the only coffee science body world-wide - are:
- to assess existing scientific and technical knowledge on coffee;
- to encourage further coffee research in all relevant scientific areas;
- all the above in the mutual interest of coffee producers, traders, processors and consumers.
These objectives have mostly been achieved by organising ca. every two years an international scientific conference on coffee. During the twenty-one colloquia organised since 1963, ASIC has dealt with the main topics associated with coffee research, such as:
- agronomy in all its aspects: genetics, botany, physiology, agrotechnics, pests and diseases, etc.;
- chemistry: techniques used in coffee analysis, chemical composition, aroma, etc.;
- technology: green coffee processing, roasting, grinding, extraction, decaffeination, etc.;
- physiological effects: coffee and health;
- packaging, storage, etc.
Over the years, the attendance has steadily increased, peaking at 350 participants for the 21st conference (Montpellier, 2006), while the number of communications also followed a growing curve, reaching more than 200 oral and poster presentations in the last two conferences.
The proceedings of the different conference have all been published by ASIC. This series of publications, the authors of which are amongst the most eminent international specialists in their fields, consists of several thousand articles. It provides an original source of exceptional technical and scientific information relevant to coffee trees and coffee, that is indispensable to both scientists and professionals.
The Table of Contents of all Proceedings can be consulted from this Web site. Starting with the Proceedings of the 14th Conference, abstracts of all papers are freely accessible and the full papers can be purchased on-line (free access for ASIC members). Complete Proceedings can be purchased from ASIC office.
More recently, ASIC Board has undertaken to intensify ASIC's activities aiming at promoting scientific contacts and exchanges among coffee researchers. To this effect, in addition to the biennial conferences, the following initiatives are underway:
- Setting up an information platform on current research programmes, ongoing studies, new projects, internal new projects, research reports, etc., via ASIC internet site.
- Posting on ASIC web site regularly updated information on new significant scientific findings related to coffee.
- Maintaining a coffee expert network capable of answering questions related to coffee science.