UCC debuts hydrogen-roasted coffee at a “futuristic” event

To promote its eco-friendly, hydrogen-roasted coffee, Coffee Style UCC Co, Ltd, one of the UCC group companies, conducted a three-day event – Mirai Coffee Experience – in Tokyo, Japan, August 22-24 (“mirai” means “future” in Japanese).

Coffee Style UCC is now using coffee beans roasted by a hydrogen roaster manufactured by HydroMaster. The hydrogen roaster is a more sustainable method than other forms of roasting because it does not emit carbon dioxide (CO2) when hydrogen (H2) is used as the fuel. Another benefit when using hydrogen is that it can control the roasting temperature more precisely than coffee roasters that are fuelled by natural gas, which means a wider variety of tastes can be created by detailed roasting profiles. For example, hydrogen fuel can keep lower temperature for a longer time, which enables it to extract more sweetness from coffee beans.

The UCC Group is committed to discovering various nuances of coffee while maintaining strong values. As such, the group has established a sustainability policy and set a target to become a carbon neutral company by 2040. When UCC examined coffee processing to identify areas where CO2 emissions could be reduced, they focused on roasting. UCC usually uses large coffee roasters powered by natural gas, which use fossil fuel and the main component is methane (CH4). Therefore, CO2 is emitted when natural gas is combusted.

UCC believed that hydrogen-fuelled roasting would expand the variety of coffee tastes. An experiment to introduce hydrogen as a fuel for coffee roasting started in 2022 in collaboration with several public and private sectors. As hydrogen is the lightest substance and less common as a fuel, handling hydrogen requires special machinery and techniques. In a series of small-scale tests of hydrogen-powered coffee roasting, UCC and a machinery manufacturer partner invented a special hybrid burner for coffee roasters. They installed the HydroMaster in their Fuji factory located in Shizuoka Prefecture, and procured “green hydrogen,” produced using solar-generated electricity and water from the neighboring Yamanashi Prefecture. In April 2025, they commenced the first large-scale commercial hydrogen roasting in the world and launched hydrogen-roasted coffee products.

Now UCC Coffee is trying to raise awareness of hydrogen-roasted coffee and its benefits such as no CO2 emissions and new coffee tastes that cannot be achieved by using other fuels. The HydroMaster has a roasting capacity of 6,000 tonnes of coffee a year, and can be powered by hydrogen, natural gas, or a mixture of the two. If the HydroMaster is operated using 100% natural gas, it emits 570 tonnes of CO2 a year, whereas zero CO2 is emitted if only hydrogen is used. Therefore, UCC is trying to increase the awareness of and market for hydrogen-roasted coffee.

• Yumi Nakatsugawa has been working as a freelance writer specialising in food and restaurant management. Based in Japan, she may be reached at: [email protected].