ABSTRACT
Coffee is one of the most valuable agricultural raw materials cultivated in the world. Coffee exports were valued at US$39.3 billion in 2014, only a little less than wheat at US$47.8 billion but higher than maize having a total value of US$32.7 billion (https://comtrade. un.org/). However, it should be considered as an orphan crop regarding investment in research as measured by the number of published research articles (Nature Plants, 2015). Coffee is not considered by the private agro-seed companies, and like most cash crops it is not part of the CGIAR programme for varieties development which are focused on staple crops.
