Cider Research

The American Cider Association Research Grant Committee was formed in 2015 by the Board of Directors to narrow the information gap on cider production.

The committee developed a Research RFP later that year and the first year grant awardees were announced at CiderCon 2016:

  • Nikki Rothwell - Evaluating fire blight and apple scab susceptibility and management of 30 cider varieties - 2 year project. $11,013 (FY16) and $11,030 (FY17)
  • Edwin Winzeler - The effect of 1-MCP Treatment on Cider (SmartFresh) Aroma and Taste. $6,600
  • Edwin Winzeler - Use of ethephon and 1-MCP in harves of Manchurian crabapples for cider. $4,123

Three proposals were selected in 2017:

  • Dr. Gregory Peck - Impact of Nitrogen Fertilization on Orchard Productivity, Fruit Quality, Cider Tannin Concentrations, and Fermentation Kinetics $9,152 (Cornell University)
  • Dr. Gregory Peck - Phenotyping the USDA-PGRU Malus Germplasm Collection for Novel Apples to Use in Hard Cider Production. $12,125 (FY17) (Cornell University)
  • Dr. Amanda Stewart - Cider Tannins: Quantification for Sensory Impact. $13,512  (Virginia Tech)

The grant selection committee and the board of directors selected these proposals because of their broad relevance to the hard cider industry and the quality of their proposal narratives.

Michigan State University grad student Lauren Sieloff.

This is only the second year we’ve released a request for research proposals, so it’s exciting to watch the program evolve. We noticed a large uptick in the quality of the applications this year, and we see a lot of potential for the projects we’ve chosen for funding. I can’t wait to hear the results of these projects at CiderCon in Baltimore next February,” said Michelle McGrath, American Cider Association’s executive director.