Researchers Propose 'Libex' Hybrid as Climate Change Accelerates

Researchers propose the formal name Coffea × libex for hybrids between liberica and excelsa. The hybrid could provide a commercially viable route for coffee production as climate change increases pressure on existing crops. Coffee growers in Sarawak, Malaysia, and parts of Southeast Asia, India, and Central America have cultivated the hybrid for years without recognizing it as a distinct cross. Genomic analysis of 7,618 single nucleotide polymorphisms across 113 samples from farms and germplasm collections confirmed extensive hybridization in cultivated plants. Despite separation between wild populations, the results suggest the hybrid arose through cultivation, seed movement, or both. Admixture was especially common in Sarawak, with most labeled liberica accessions showing measurable excelsa genetic contribution.

"Researchers from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, have proposed the formal name Coffea × libex for hybrids of the liberica and excelsa coffee species, arguing that the cross could provide a commercially viable pathway for coffee production as climate change intensifies."

"The study notes that coffee growers in Sarawak, Malaysia, and parts of Southeast Asia, India and Central America have been cultivating the hybrid for years without identifying it as such."

"The new study involved genomic analysis of 7,618 single nucleotide polymorphisms - tiny variations in DNA that act as genetic fingerprints - across 113 plant samples collected from farms and germplasm collections on three continents. The team confirmed extensive hybridization between liberica and excelsa in cultivated plants, despite wide separation between the species' wild populations, suggesting that the libex hybrid emerged through cultivation, seed movement or both."

"Of the 45 Sarawak accessions labeled as liberica, 40 showed measurable excelsa admixture, and 28 exceeded 12% admixture. Only five were genetically "pure" liberica. Admixed plan"

Read at Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine