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Expertise
Quality coffee results from good farming
practices to proper processing
July 1, 2006 • Manila Bulletin
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PROPERLY DRIED. After harvesting
, the coffee berries are poured into a flotation tank
to separate the floaters from the sinkers. The floaters
are unfilled berries or are damaged by insect. The sinkers
are dried thoroughly. Drying is necessary to prevent
microorganisms from growing during storage. The berries
can be sun-dried or dried by machine.
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When one mentions coffee, it is usually the brand like Nescafé
Classic that comes to mind. However familiar we are with its
taste and aroma though, not many of us know the strict and
rigorous process that coffee beans used in Nestlé Classic
undergo.
From the planting and propagation of the Robusta coffee berries
to their careful selection by coffee farmers and the special
roasting process that they undergo, coming up with a rich
and flavorful cup demands a lot of hardwork and quality control.
GOOD FARMING. The first step to quality coffee is
good farming. And with the Nestlé Experimental and
Development Farm (NEDF) in Tagum, Davao del Norte, Coffee
farmers are trained on modern farming systems and are given
access to high quality and high yielding Robusta coffee planting
materials. To date, the NEDF provides 80% of all Robusta cuttings
used in the Philippines.
"A coffee is a 50-year crop," says Zenon Alenton,
resident agronomist of NEDF. "If you plant a bad coffee
tree, it means harvesting 48 years of bad coffee."
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HARVEST ONLY THE RIPE BERRIES.
One of the most important stages in coffee production
to produce excellent coffee taste and aroma is handpicking
only he ripe berries. If the unripe are harvested together
with the ripe ones, the resulting coffee will be inferior.
Green cherries yield flat beans, which burn fast in
roasting, thus producing a bitter taste. Overripe cherries
on the other hand, produce acidic taste. So only the
properly ripe cherries are handpicked for best results.
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GOOD HARVESTING METHODS. The next step involves the
practice of good harvesting methods. This involves the physical
removal of the coffee berries from the trees, one of the most
important stages in coffee production as it, along with roasting,
contributes to good coffee taste and aroma.
"It is best that the berries be carefully handpicked
by the farmer because this allows the selective removal of
ripe berries, from the cluster," explains Alenton. "Harvesting
green berries with red ones will result in immature beans
after processing. Green cherries yield flat beans, which burn
fast in roasting, thus producing a bitter taste. Overripe
cherries on the other hand, produce an acidic taste."
Alenton says red coffee cherries are more fragrant and smooth
because of their higher aromatic oil and lower organic acid
content.
POSTHARVEST TREATMENT. The coffee berries then undergo
a postharvest treatment. Here, they are poured into a flotation
tank to help separate the floaters from the sinkers. Floaters
are insect-damaged or unfilled cherries, while sinkers are
good quality ripe cherries that are free from insect damage.
The coffee cherry sinkers then go through drying and sorting.
"Drying is necessary to prevent microorganisms from
growing during storage," explains Alenton. "The
coffee cherries can be dried in the sun or in mechanical dryers."
The coffee cherries are then sorted. "This involves
the selection or taking out of undesirable foreign materials
or broken pieces of coffee beans that can degrade or bring
down the quality," says Alenton.
BROUGHT TO BUYING STATION. After sorting, the beans
are delivered to the NESCAFÉ buying stations. Currently there
are 11 coffee buying stations nationwide by Nestlé
Philippines, Inc. Here, they are graded according to moisture
content, percentage triage, and cup taste. "Coffee with
moldy, fermented, and or foreign taste is immediately rejected,"
says Alenton.
The chosen coffee berries are then stored, where equilibrium
between the water inside the bean and the humidity of the
ambient air is maintained.
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SORTING. Coffee beans should
have no impurities, hence, foreign materials or broken
pieces of coffee beans are removed as they bring down
the quality of the resulting coffee.
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ROASTING. The final and most integral part in the
processing of the Nescafé Classic is the roasting.
"Nescafé has mastered the art of roasting to
perfection. Its special roasting process brings out the fresh,
flavorful taste and rich aroma of the coffee berries. And
this is the reason why its rich taste and aroma is very distinguishable
from other coffee brands," says Alenton.
During the roasting process, the coffee cherries expand and
undergo density and color changes. They turn to yellow once
they absorb heat and then to brown as the beans in the cherries
are pushed out. They further darken in color once they release
the oils, which give coffee its flavor.
These are the stages that the Robusta coffee cherries used
in Nescafé Classic undergo and these are the processes
that make it the most popular coffee choice in the country.
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