FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact | Alexandra Katona-Carroll Organization| Coffee Quality Institute Phone | 562.901.3166 Email | akatona@coffeeinstitute.org Website | www.coffeeinstitute.org
CQI Releases New Q Certification Marks LONG BEACH, CA (August 19, 2013) – The Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) is pleased to release a brand new round of Q Certification Marks to its Licensing Partners. This release includes a new mark for Q Certified Arabica along with the launch of two completely new marks, Q Certified Robusta and Q Certified Blend. The Q Certification Marks are consumer facing and indicate an independent, third-party quality certification. They also provide an assurance of quality that buyers can trust. In order for a Q Certification Mark to appear on a promotional item, the coffee has to be vetted through CQI’s Q Coffee System, where it is blindly evaluated by three Q Graders and given an average score on a 100-point scale. It must also pass the green coffee standards for Arabica as defined by the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) and those of Robusta as defined by CQI. Licensing Partners have officially signed agreements with CQI and have rights to all Q Certification Marks set forth by the organization. Currently, CQI has active Licensing Partners all over the world, including Colombia, Japan, and the U.S. The program is quickly gaining momentum and has attracted several new potential partners with the addition of Q Certified Robusta. For more information, please visit us at http://coffeeinstitute.org/the-q-coffee-system/become-a-licensingpartner. -------------------------------------------------------------------The Coffee Quality Institute® (CQI) is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization working internationally to improve the quality of coffee and the lives of the people who produce it. CQI provides training and technical assistance to coffee producers and other individuals in the supply chain to increase the value, volume and sustainability of high quality coffee production. CQI also works toward building institutional capacity in coffee producing countries by creating systems and infrastructure that encourage a focus on quality that leads to higher farmer incomes. | www.cofffeeinstitute.org