World Coffee Events’ (WCE) Qualified Testing committee has released its 2017 Qualified Testing Evaluation Standards and Procedures.
Qualified testing certifies equipment and products for use in WCE’s world coffee competitions, including the World Barista Championship (WBC), World Coffee in Good Spirits Championship, World Brewers Cup, World Latte Art Championship, World Coffee Roasting Championship, and World Cup Tasters Championship.
Testing occurs every three years, with a dedicated committee of expert volunteers gathering to evaluate and certify equipment and products for competition suitability in categories including espresso machines, espresso grinders, coffee grinders, coffee brewers, and cleaning products.
Interested manufacturers can complete a form to register for formal submission to Qualified Testing. To access the form, click here.
All registrations to participate in the qualified testing must be received by 1 March. The testing will then take place between March and July. Test results will be returned to participants from August to September.
If a manufacturers’ equipment and/or products passes evaluation, they will have the option to license a mark of certification from the Specialty Coffee Association. Successfully passing Qualified Testing evaluation is also required for any equipment or products being submitted with bids for tested categories in the 2018 to 2020 Qualified Sponsorship cycle of the world coffee championship categories. Bid submissions will commence in October, with the final Qualified Sponsors for 2018 to 2020 announced in December.
Qualified Testing has been a part of the World Coffee Championships since the earliest days of the WBC, and is integral to creating world stages where coffee excellence and technical mastery can shine.
The 2017 documents from the committee as well as a timeline for the 2017 Qualified Testing program can be found at www.worldcoffeeevents.org/2017-qualified-testing-program/
Photo credit: Jake O, World Coffee Events
