If you are a coffee enthusiast, you may be curious about how coffee is sourced and produced. It takes a lot of work and effort for the coffee beans to be transformed into the cup of coffee you drink.
In case you are interested in learning about the coffee production process, this short article covers everything you need to know!
Types of Processes
There are a variety of different coffee production processes that have emerged in different regions. Two of the most common processes are the Wet Process and the Dry Process.
Wet Process
The Wet Process is common in Latin America, as well as in East African countries such as Kenya. It requires the use of a lot of water. As soon as the beans are harvested, they are immersed in water. The ripe beans sink to the bottom, while the unripe ones float in the water. This makes it easy to remove the unripe beans. The beans are then forced through a mesh screen with water pressure.
This helps remove the waste skin and fruit from the beans, leaving a small amount of pulp attached. After this, the beans are fermented for around 24 hours in order to break down the remaining pulp. Following this, the beans are washed out and dried until the final layer can be easily removed. Using the wet process results in coffee that is bright and tastes strong.
Dry Process
The Dry Process is popular in Haiti, Ecuador, Paraguay, Brazil, and Ethiopia. It is also known as the “natural” process since it is one of the oldest methods for processing coffee. This process does not require the use of water or any extensive machinery. Once the coffee cherries are harvested, they are sorted through based on quality and cleaned. They are then left out to dry in the sun for up to four weeks.
During this drying process, the cherries are not left idle and are instead raked through. Raking helps ensure that the drying process is consistent and that the cherries do not mold. As soon as the cherries have dried up properly, the dehydrated skin and fruit is removed and discarded. This leaves a green coffee bean that is fruity and intense in flavor. The drying process is much cheaper compared to the wet process, and also more popular in regions with water shortages.
Honey Process
The honey process is essentially a mixture of wet and dry processes. The honey process is followed differently in different regions. But an example of it would be removing some of the fruit using the wet process and then fermenting the cherries and drying them.
There is also a semi-dry process that is similar. In it, cherries are forced through a pulping machine to remove most of the fruit. The rest of the fruit is removed through fermentation. This process creates coffee beans that are less acidic.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are many different types of coffee production processes. The most common ones are the wet and dry process or a mixture of the two. The type of process used in an area depends on factors like weather and water availability. We hope you were able to understand how coffee production works and will be reading more about it!