What is the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI)?

The Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) is an American non-profit organisation founded in 1996 whose primary mission is to improve coffee quality and the lives of the people involved in its production. The CQI is best known for its Q Grader programme — the world's most recognised professional coffee tasting certification — and for its capacity-building programmes in producing countries.

The CQI was founded at the initiative of the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) to solve a concrete problem: the absence of international standardisation in coffee sensory evaluation. Before the CQI, every buyer, roaster or laboratory used its own scoring protocols, making objective comparison of coffees across different markets impossible. The CQI's goal was to create a shared language and a universally recognised certification system.

The CQI's flagship programme is the Q Arabica Grader certification (and Q Robusta Grader for fine Robusta), which is the coffee equivalent of a CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) designation in finance. Q Grader training comprises 22 exams over 4-5 intensive days: olfactory testing (identification of 36 aromas from the coffee taster's flavour wheel), SCA cupping, green coffee defect sorting, triangle testing (identify the different coffee among three), and organoleptic exams on acidity, body and flavour. The failure rate is high — often above 40% for unprepared candidates.

The CQI also maintains a global registry of Q Graders, currently comprising more than 7,500 certified professionals in over 60 countries. This community forms the reference network for specialty coffee buying, certification and traceability. A coffee scored by a Q Grader carries international legitimacy that opens premium markets, particularly in Northern Europe, Japan and the United States.

Beyond certifications, the CQI develops field programmes in producing countries (Ethiopia, Colombia, Peru, Vietnam) aimed at improving processing practices, sorting quality and local analytical capabilities. These programmes have contributed to the emergence of hundreds of local micro-roasters and producer cooperatives capable of accessing the specialty coffee market directly, bypassing traditional intermediaries.

Key Coffee Quality Institute programmes

• Q Arabica Grader: professional tasting certification (22 exams over 4-5 days)
• Q Robusta Grader: same rigour applied to fine quality Robusta
• Q Processing: certification for post-harvest processing experts
• Q Educator: training of authorised Q Grader trainers
• Café Practices: field programme in producing countries to improve quality at source
• Quality Registry: database of coffees certified and scored by Q Graders
• Partnership with SCA for alignment of global quality standards