About 2.25 billion cups of coffee are consumed worldwide every day. Before the coffee beans reach your morning cup, they go through a complex process in the coffee supply chain. Learn how this well-favored beverage packed with energy gets made from start to finish.
The Supply Chain of Coffee
It takes 10 steps to produce a cup of coffee. Follow the ingredients’ journey from seed to beverage:
- Growing: Two types of tropical plants grow primarily in South America, Africa, and Asia at high altitudes. The Coffea arabica offers complex flavors with less caffeine for specialty drinks. The Coffeea canephora (robusta) beans have stronger flavors typically used for instant blends and espressos.
- Harvesting: The plants produce their first crop after about four to seven years and continue providing fruit for around 25 years. Each coffee berry contains two beans. You can either harvest them by hand or with a machine.
- Processors: After they’re picked, the fruit dries in the sun. They pass through a pulping machine to remove the outer skin from the bean. Then, water channels separate the beans by weight.
- Milling: At the dry mill stage, any impurities are removed. A hulling process removes another layer. From there, sorting differentiates the beans by density, size, and color.
- Roasting: The raw beans enter a pre-heated drum of about 240 degrees. Depending on the type of roast, the beans rotate in the drum for about 12-18 minutes. They exit the roasting drum and cool in large trays.
- Packaging: The beans then gets packaged into nitrogen flushed bags, cups, or pods. Materials like foil laminate protect the product from oxygen, light, and moisture.
- Shipping: The beans ship by both land and air. Bulk shipments can reach domestic and international locations. Buyers usually include distributors, retailers, and sometimes direct to consumers.
- Grinding: Preparing the coffee at home can involve a grinding process to prep for brewing. The fineness of the grind depends on the brewing method. You can grind the beans by hand or by machine.
- Brewing: Adding hot water brews the coffee in various ways. Some methods require pressurized water to pass through the grounds (espresso), or the water can mix directly with the grounds and steep (french press).
- Drinking: Now you can enjoy your coffee!
Contact Joe’s Garage Coffee
Joe’s Garage Coffee supplies coffee for companies of all sizes. Our turnkey coffee bean supply chain takes care of everything from start to finish with your exact preferences in mind. Achieve any flavor you want with our manufacturing services for growing brands.
To get started, call 206-466-5579 or fill out a contact form today!
