Why did the Taiwan specialty coffee ranking change?

A specialty coffee bean evaluation run by Yunlin County in Taiwan was disrupted when a computer system failure scrambled the codes that linked each contestant to their beans, so previously announced rankings came out wrong. The Grand Prize in several processing categories was downgraded to Gold Award. Organizers corrected the list and promised to pay the prize money difference, but the credibility of the competition is now under scrutiny.

Taiwan-grown beans have gained attention in recent years, and a single lot sold for NT$520,000 per 5 kilograms at an auction there in May 2022. Because placing near the top of a competition raises both price and recognition for growers, such errors matter. Global coffee production is large, and competition results shape which award-winning beans buyers seek out.

Global coffee production is enormous every year, and different regions and processing methods give coffee beans a myriad of flavors. Rather than trying blindly, many enthusiasts choose to directly buy award-winning beans from competitions, which both ensures quality and allows them to experience the award-winning flavors. Coffee farmers also hope to place well in competitions to raise the price and recognition of their green beans. However, a specialty coffee bean evaluation in Yunlin County, Taiwan, was disrupted by a computer system failure that scrambled the codes linking contestants and coffee beans, causing errors in the previously announced rankings. The Grand Prize became the Gold Award, drawing attention. The organizers urgently corrected the list and promised to pay the difference in prize money, but the credibility of the competition still faces a test.

The number of coffee beans produced each year is enormous, and different origins and processing methods create coffees with distinct flavors. Compared with conducting blind tastings on one's own, directly purchasing award-winning beans from competitions is a more reliable approach. Therefore, every year a large number of coffee enthusiasts and growers pay close attention to the results of major coffee competitions—growers hope to sell their green beans at a good price, while consumers want to taste the unique flavors of the winners. However, a coffee competition in Taiwan had an embarrassing mishap: the original Grand Prize became the Gold Award.

In recent years, coffee beans from Taiwan, China, have been growing in reputation. In May this year, at a green bean auction in Taiwan, a Grand Prize coffee bean sold for NT$520,000 per 5 kilograms, becoming the focus of the event. Placing near the top in a competition is not only a rare promotional opportunity for coffee growers, but also means they can sell at an ideal price.

On July 3, 2022, the list of winners of the Yunlin County Taiwan-produced specialty coffee bean evaluation was announced. According to the local media outlet Yunlin News, Guoyu Workshop won the Grand Prize in the washed processing category; Lai Lin Furong (Shibi) won the Grand Prize in the natural processing category; and Liguan Biotechnology Company won the Grand Prize in the honey processing category.

—Award list before correction

After the results were announced, some contestants discovered when they retrieved the coffee beans they had submitted that the beans they got back were not the same as those they had submitted at the time of the competition, and thus noticed that there was a problem with the competition results.

Another contestant told the media that, according to the on-site judges' description, the coffee variety of the washed category champion should have been Geisha. Because Geisha has a unique flavor and high recognizability, the judges went after the competition to taste at the stall of the grower first announced as champion and found that it was not Geisha but an ordinary variety, so an emergency meeting was convened.

On July 4, the local government launched an emergency meeting, gathering the chief judge, the organizing unit, and other relevant personnel to jointly identify the root of the problem; on July 5, competition staff rechecked the sealed original paper documents, compared each coffee bean one by one, re-measured moisture content and density, re-ranked according to the correct list, codes, and evaluation scores, and held a briefing for contestants, randomly disclosing the correct list of winners.

—Award list after correction

According to a report by Taiwan's United Daily News, the organizers explained that a computer malfunction had caused the codes corresponding to contestants and coffee beans to be scrambled, and when the evaluation scores were uploaded, the system error was not detected, resulting in incorrect rankings, which were later corrected. Regarding prize money, the competition did not claw back prizes already awarded, and for winners who received less prize money because of the ranking changes, it made supplementary payments.

For contestants, placing near the top represents excellent product quality. After competition results are announced, winners usually use their outstanding results for promotion and sell their products at higher prices. Even if the competition admits the error and corrects the list, the whole process may still deal a fatal blow to the credibility of the competition and consumer confidence, and may also damage the reputation of a region's coffee beans.

—From right: Grand Prize natural category Lai Lin Furong, washed category Guoyu Workshop, honey category Liguan Biotechnology

In an interview with United Daily News, contestants said this was the first time such a thing had happened, but they could understand it was unavoidable. The local government emphasized that it would establish an inspection mechanism to prevent similar situations from happening again. This error exposed a procedural oversight rather than a human-caused problem. Some contestants suggested formulating competition rules of the highest standard, and after rankings are publicly announced, award-winning beans should provide origin certification for comparison to achieve a double verification effect.

Image source: Internet

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.