Producer Toolkit: Processing, Pt 3 - Critical instruments and poisoned rivers
Shownotes
This episode explores how just a handful of cheap instruments can ensure quality is reproducible year-on-year, and the wastewater crisis poisoning rivers behind picture-perfect coffee farms.
Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show.
Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing.
Please spread the word about Filter Stories!
Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story.
Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter
Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter
Write a review on Apple Podcasts
Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify
Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories
Related podcast episodes:
Lucia:
- Making Coffee with Lucia Solis — How to De-Funkify your Naturals
- Making Coffee with Lucia Solis — Germination: A Close Look at Coffee Drying
James:
People mentioned in the episode:
- Lester Lerner, Old Willow Coffee, Colombia
- Orlando Osorio, La Primavera, Colombia
- Astrid Medina, Tolima, Colombia
- David Velásquez, Los Naranjos, El Salvador
- Jesús Antonio Chala, Finca El Silencio, Colombia
- Victor Chala, Palma Rosa, Colombia
- Melissa de Gasperín, Rancho San Felipe, Córdoba, Mexico
- Norberto Suárez, Boquete, Panama
- César Marín, Chacra D'Dago, Peru
- Manuel Matta, Santa Maria, Colombia
Resources:
- Innovakit: canguaro (picking sleeves)
- Pinhalense Cherry Floater
- Pinhalense Vertical Pulper
- Pinhalense Mechanical Dryers
- Tolva — Plastic Vertical Hopper
- Moisture Meter (Mid Tier)
- Moisture Meter (High End)
- Cenicafé Low-Water Wet Milling (Ecomill-type systems)
- Flávio Borém Drying Research
- DIY Moisture Maths (weight + fixed volume)
Lucia's Favorite Tools:
The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations:
The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro
Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses.
Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here.
What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off.
Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy.
Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here.