A research institute in Brazil has embarked on a crucial phase of a 20-year endeavor to create naturally decaffeinated arabica coffee varieties. The researchers believe that this achievement could hold substantial commercial opportunities.

The program is being developed at the Instituto Agronomico de Campinas (IAC). This leading coffee research center has provided many high-yield coffee plants that have helped Brazil become a powerhouse in the global coffee market, supplying more than a third of the trade.

Researchers at the IAC said they are starting regional field trials of some of the varieties they have been developing for several years by crossing different coffee plants that naturally have very low caffeine content, using the germplasm bank at their facilities.

If successful, the resulting varieties could find a market niche in large consuming regions such as Europe and the United States among consumers that would prefer them instead of current decaffeinated brands that result from chemical or industrial processes.

Companies selling decaffeinated coffee could also benefit from reduced costs since they could skip the industrial processes to remove caffeine from traditional coffee varieties.

"The results we had so far look promising; we are upbeat," said Julio Cesar Mistro, a researcher overseeing the project at IAC.

Some clones developed in the center are being planted in different regions in Brazil. Coffee trees usually take two to three years to produce the first fruits, so there are still some years ahead until the researchers can harvest that coffee and test it.

Consumption of decaffeinated coffee accounts for around 10% of the market in the U.S., according to data from the National Coffee Association (NCA).

Although many drink coffee specifically seeking the energy boost provided by caffeine, some people are intolerant to it or prefer to have "decaf" when later in the day to avoid potential sleeping disruptions.