IMLVT

What is the IMLVT?

The International Multi-Location Variety Trial (IMLVT) is a groundbreaking global, collaborative research project led by World Coffee Research (WCR). It brings together 31 of the world's top-performing coffee varieties and tests them in real-world trial sites across more than a dozen countries. In CafeClima, 26 of these can be accessed to compare their performance data.

The goal? To understand how different coffee varieties perform under a wide range of environmental conditions—especially in the face of climate change.

Each participating institution sets up trial plots where these varieties are grown and monitored using standardized methods. By growing the same coffee trees in many countries at once—hotter, cooler, wetter, drier—we can see how today’s trees will perform in tomorrow’s climates. Some places already have the climate another country is expected to have in 10 or 20 years. By testing coffee trees there now, farmers can see which varieties will still thrive as conditions change.

The varieties in the IMLVT represent a wide range of genetic backgrounds and come from 11 different breeding programs around the world. Each trial plot follows a standardized design that ensures consistency and scientific rigor across all locations. At every trial site, the selected coffee varieties are planted in three replicated blocks (‘Fischer blocks’). In each block, each variety is represented by a row of 10 trees. In each different plot, the layout is made after randomization of each variety in each block.

Each site is managed using the standard agricultural practices of the local region, including fertilization and pest control, thereby obtaining results that are meaningful to real-world conditions in the local context. Researchers track traits like growth, productivity (fresh cherries), and disease resistance (coffee rust), collecting powerful data that helps identify which varieties thrive where.

This trial is the first of its kind and creates the largest-ever global dataset on coffee variety performance. Its insights help farmers make better planting decisions, improve resilience, and ultimately ensure a more sustainable and high-quality global coffee supply.

For more information on the IMLVT and related news, visit also: https://worldcoffeeresearch.org/programs/international-multilocation-variety-trial

Trial plots

Below, find a list of the participating institutions and the corresponding trial plots.

Partners