Metagenomic sequencing of microbial communities present in spontaneous fermentation of coffees in northern Peru. METACAFE

The quality of commercial coffee berry, the principal raw material for coffee production, depends on several factors including type of plantations, the agricultural practices and the post-harvest processing. Among these, fermentation are generally considered the most relevant step, since during these phases coffee flavors precursors are formed and fixed. Fermentation is characterized by a well-defined succession of yeasts, lactic acid bacteria and acetic acid bacteria, therefore the aim of this study is to explore total bacterial and fungal communities involved in coffee fermentation. To achieve these results, shotgun metagenomics was used on fermentations from good and bad quality coffees to assess the total bacterial and fungal community, indicating that this approach has the ability to provide a comprehensive view of the coffee fermentation microbiota at the species level.