Cocoa and Coffee Fermentations Fermented Foods and Beverages Series

Cocoa and coffee beans are some of the most traded agricultural commodities on international markets. Combined, they provide raw materials for a global industry valued in excess of $250 billion. Despite this, few people know that microorganisms and microbial fermentation play key roles in their production and can have major impacts on product quality, safety, and value.

Cocoa and Coffee Fermentations explores the scientific principles behind cocoa and coffee fermentation. The book covers botanical and production backgrounds, methods of bean fermentation and drying, microbial ecology and activities of fermentation, the biochemistry of fermentation, product quality and safety, and waste utilization.

The book aims to optimize cocoa and coffee processing based on scientific evidence to enhance traditional processing methods that often give rise to inefficiencies and inconsistencies in product quality. It also aims to provide a better understanding of the complex microbial ecology in cocoa and coffee fermentations which involve interactions between species of yeasts, bacteria, and filamentous fungi.

Cocoa and Coffee Fermentations hopes to inspire further research linking the microbiology and biochemistry of cocoa and coffee bean fermentations with the development of better controlled fermentations, implementation of quality assurance programs, and ultimately improvement of the sensory attributes of the final product.

Mixed Microbial Fermentations and Methodologies for Their Investigation. Botany and Production of Cocoa. Methods of Cocoa Fermentation and Drying. Microbial Activities during Cocoa Fermentation. Biochemistry of Cocoa Fermentation. Quality and Safety of Cocoa Beans. Cocoa Processing and Chocolate Technology. Agro-Industrial Uses of Cocoa By-Products. Botany and Production of Coffee. Methods of Coffee Fermentation and Drying. Microbial Activity during Coffee Fermentation. Metabolic Responses of Coffee Beans during Processing and Their Impact on Coffee Flavor. Quality of Coffee Beans. Toxigenic Fungi and Mycotoxins in Coffee. Management and Utilization of Wastes from Coffee Processing.

Rosane F. Schwan is a professor in the Department of Biology at the Federal University of Lavras in Minas Gerais, Brasil, where she is involved in research on the microbiology of fermented foods and beverages. She obtained a master’s degree in microbiology from the Universidade Federal de Viçosa in Brasil and her PhD from the University of Bath in the UK. Dr. Schwan has a special interest in cocoa and coffee fermentations and has authored numerous publications on the microbiology and biotechnology of these processes over the past 30 years.

Graham H. Fleet is an emeritus professor in the School of Chemical Engineering at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. He obtained his master’s degree in microbiology from the University of Queensland in Australia and his PhD in microbiology and food science & technology from the University of California, Davis. Dr. Fleet has been an active researcher of the microbiology and biotechnology of fermented foods and beverages for more than 35 years.