SCA LECTURE SERIES

Each year, World of Coffee welcomes industry respected experts who inspire, educate, and motivate coffee professionals to reach for their goals and expand their coffee knowledge. Lecture presenters are carefully vetted experts who are highly enthusiastic about their area of expertise and have a strong desire to share that knowledge for the betterment of the industry. All lectures are free to attend with a World of Coffee badge on a first-come, first-served basis.

See the full schedule below.

Thursday, June 25

Site Calendar

10:00 am – 10:45 am10:00 – 10:4510:00 – 10:45

Making Sense of Coffee’s Value: Sector Perspectives on How Coffee’s Value is Created and Distributed

10:00 am – 10:45 am10:00 – 10:4510:00 – 10:45

Andrés Montenegro

10:00 am – 10:45 am10:00 – 10:4510:00 – 10:45

11:00 am – 11:45 am11:00 – 11:4511:00 – 11:45

SCA physical defects revisited

11:00 am – 11:45 am11:00 – 11:4511:00 – 11:45

Sebastian Opitz

11:00 am – 11:45 am11:00 – 11:4511:00 – 11:45

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

Mapping Coffee Oxidation: A Framework for Freshness in Cold Extraction

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

Agnese Santanatoglia

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

From Molecules to Experience: How Coffee Science Can Improve Flavor, Sustainability, and Customer Perception

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

Ilze Laukalēja-Broka

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

De-risking smallholder sourcing through shared export systems

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

Ana Claudia Silva

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

3:00 pm – 4:15 pm15:00 – 16:1515:00 – 16:15

The Strategic Economic Importance of Coffee: Why it matters for EU policymaking

3:00 pm – 4:15 pm15:00 – 16:1515:00 – 16:15

Speakers from the European Coffee Federation, International Coffee Organization, Specialty Coffee Association

3:00 pm – 4:15 pm15:00 – 16:1515:00 – 16:15

Friday, June 26

Site Calendar

9:00 am – 9:45 am09:00 – 09:4509:00 – 09:45

Building Shared Value: Learning from the 2026 Sustainability Award Winners

9:00 am – 9:45 am09:00 – 09:4509:00 – 09:45

Bean Voyage and Coffee Circle

9:00 am – 9:45 am09:00 – 09:4509:00 – 09:45

10:00 am – 10:45 am10:00 – 10:4510:00 – 10:45

Coffee Chaos 2026: Brazil’s Mega-Crop, Price Rollercoaster & What It Means for Your Bottom Line

10:00 am – 10:45 am10:00 – 10:4510:00 – 10:45

Albert Scalla

10:00 am – 10:45 am10:00 – 10:4510:00 – 10:45

11:00 am – 11:45 am11:00 – 11:4511:00 – 11:45

Preference Mapping: the science of understanding quality and increasing customer satisfaction

11:00 am – 11:45 am11:00 – 11:4511:00 – 11:45

Kim Elena Ionescu

11:00 am – 11:45 am11:00 – 11:4511:00 – 11:45

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

The Architects of Gastronomic Experience

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

Mikkel Selmer

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

Coffee quality measurement and modification with electricity

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

Christopher Hendon

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

Agroecology and ancestral ontologies of coffee smallholders in south-western Colombia

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

David Caicedo Sarralde

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm15:00 – 16:0015:00 – 16:00

Origin with Purpose: Redefining Guatemalan Coffees Country Brand

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm15:00 – 16:0015:00 – 16:00

Andrea Vergara, Carol Gstalder

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm15:00 – 16:0015:00 – 16:00

4:15 pm – 5:15 pm16:15 – 17:1516:15 – 17:15

Real Beans, Real Wins: How Partnerships are Building Resilient Coffee Chains

4:15 pm – 5:15 pm16:15 – 17:1516:15 – 17:15

Abdulahi Aliyu, Nadia Hoarau Mwaura, Andrés Montenegro, Kyalire Kamboyera

4:15 pm – 5:15 pm16:15 – 17:1516:15 – 17:15

Saturday, June 27

Site Calendar

9:30 am – 10:30 am09:30 – 10:3009:30 – 10:30

How are coffee sector actors preparing for the EU Deforestation Regulation? Research impressions from Brussels, Colombia and Côte d’Ivoire

9:30 am – 10:30 am09:30 – 10:3009:30 – 10:30

Prof. Janina Grabs, Dr. Charline Depoorter, Dr. Alexandra Bögner, Daria Scharnhorst, Lucia Casalegno, Lesly Nassila

9:30 am – 10:30 am09:30 – 10:3009:30 – 10:30

10:45 am – 11:45 am10:45 – 11:4510:45 – 11:45

Taxonomic Tensions: Approaching Canephora, Robusta and Conilon

10:45 am – 11:45 am10:45 – 11:4510:45 – 11:45

Lukas Harbig, Dr. Piet Stoffelen, Gloria Pedroza

10:45 am – 11:45 am10:45 – 11:4510:45 – 11:45

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

The Art and Science of Coffee Fermentation

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

Marcel Hackler, Vinzenz Särchen

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm12:00 – 12:4512:00 – 12:45

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

Crafting Coffee Stories That Connect

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

Maria Barikhina

1:00 pm – 1:45 pm13:00 – 13:4513:00 – 13:45

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

From Firefighting to Flow: A Practical Introduction to Lean for Specialty Coffee Operations

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

David Flynn

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm14:00 – 14:4514:00 – 14:45

3:00 pm – 3:45 pm15:00 – 15:4515:00 – 15:45

Effective Sourcing Strategies for Small and Medium Roasters

3:00 pm – 3:45 pm15:00 – 15:4515:00 – 15:45

Roland Glew

3:00 pm – 3:45 pm15:00 – 15:4515:00 – 15:45

4:00 pm – 4:45 pm16:00 – 16:4516:00 – 16:45

Message on a bag: The influence of coffee label information on consumers’ expectations and experience on tasting specialty coffee

4:00 pm – 4:45 pm16:00 – 16:4516:00 – 16:45

Dr. Fabiana Carvalho

4:00 pm – 4:45 pm16:00 – 16:4516:00 – 16:45

SCA LECTURE SERIES

Thursday, June 25

Friday, June 26

Saturday, June 27

#WOCBRUSSELS