Chances are, you’ve never given much thought to how your morning cup of joe ends up in your hands. But have you ever wondered how are coffee beans harvested? If you’re like most people, the answer is probably no. After all, it’s not exactly the most pressing issue of the day.
But still, harvest time is an important time of year for coffee growers around the world. It’s a crucial time to ensure that the beans are properly gathered so that they can be roasted to perfection and end up in your mug. So, how are coffee beans harvested? Let’s take a look.
How Are Coffee Beans Harvested? 3 Stages You Need To Know
Step – 1: Collection Of The Fruits
The first step in harvesting coffee beans is to strip the fruit from the tree by hand. This is usually done using a long pole with a sharp blade on the end. The workers will carefully cut through the stem of the fruit, being careful not to damage the tree itself. Once the fruit has been cut free, it will fall to the ground where it can be collected.
Step – 2: Removal Of Beans
After all of the fruit has been harvested, the next step is to remove the beans from the fruit. This can be done by machine or by hand, depending on the grower’s preference. If it’s being done by hand, workers will sit at a long table and use a small hammer to crack open the fruit and release the beans inside. Once all of the beans have been removed, they’ll be sorted according to size and quality.
Step – 3: Dry The Beans
The final step is to dry the beans before they’re shipped off to be roasted and sold. This can be done either in the sun or in large mechanical dryers. Sun drying is more traditional, but it can also lead to uneven drying which can affect flavor. Mechanical dryers are much more consistent, but they’re also more expensive to operate. Whichever method is used, it’s important to make sure that the beans are completely dry before they’re stored or shipped so that mold doesn’t have a chance to set in.
Best Harvesting Practices
Speed isn’t the biggest concern when it comes to harvesting coffee. The primary concern is properly harvesting the coffee cherries that produce the highest quality and best-tasting coffee beans.
There are strict coffee harvesting practices in place for that exact reason. We’re going to share some of these practices so you’d know whether your coffee beans are truly the finest ones or not!
- Expert harvesters allow their coffee fruits to ripen properly. It usually takes 10-14 days
- They always pick the ripened cherries only in their respective last harvest season
- Always avoid unripe, overripe, and infested coffee cherries
- Picked cherries are always kept away from the sunlight
- The cherries that fall on the ground are never mixed with hand-picked cherries
- Harvesting machines are always kept clean and well-maintained
- Beans are always kept in separate containers during transport to avoid contamination
These harvesting practices are regarded as one of the best must-dos that make the coffee in your cup fresh, rich, fragrant, and delicious.
Conclusion
So there you have it! Now you know how coffee beans are harvested. The next time you sit down with a cup of coffee, you can think about all of the hard work that went into making it just right. From stripping the fruit off of the trees by hand to ensuring that each bean is perfectly roasted, there’s a lot of love that goes into every cup. And that’s something worth savoring.
