Coffee quality and its relationship with Brix degree and colorimetric information of coffee cherries

Abstract

Coffee is a product whose value is stipulated according to its quality, which in turn depends on the stage of maturity of its fruits—the more mature its fruits, the higher the coffee value. The objective of this work was to analyze the level of soluble solids in coffee samples, determine the spectral signature of the fruits and their chromatic information, and correlate this information with the global quality of the beverage. Coffee cherry samples were collected from four plantations in the municipality of Araponga, Minas Gerais, Brazil. They were submitted to spectral and colorimetric analyses and used to determine the Brix degree. The samples were submitted to a quality test to determine the global coffee quality. The results were submitted to Pearson’s analysis of correlation followed by spatial variability mapping of each variable in each plantation. A linear regression analysis was also conducted to generate models capable of explaining the relationship between variables. Global coffee quality has significant correlation only with R band and fruit reflectance values. It is possible to use information from these variables to predict coffee quality while still in the plantation field.