6 FASCINATING FACTS ABOUT COFFEE HARVESTING

Why there’s much more to picking Nespresso’s coffee cherries than you think.

Harvesting coffee is either done by hand or machine, depending on a farm’s size and terrain. But it’s not as easy as it may sound — coffee cherries on the same branch ripen at different times, which can make things tricky.

Want to know more about what goes behind the coffee of your perfect long black or latte? Below we reveal the curious ins and outs of coffee harvesting.

01

When is a coffee cherry ripe?

Quality coffee starts with the coffee tree. Coffee trees take approximately 3 to 4 years to bear fruit, or coffee cherries. Telling when a coffee cherry is ripe and ready to be harvested is easy: it’s bright red! If it’s green, you’re too early, and if it’s black, you’ve waited too long (note: coffee beans come from the seeds of coffee cherries). We train the farmers we partner with around the world to ensure they always pick ripe cherries, guaranteeing only the highest quality coffee beans goes into your cup of Nespresso coffee.

02

Main and Fly crops

Coffee is generally harvested just once a year and during different periods, depending on the country. Certain countries, such as Kenya, have two crops (a main crop and a fly crop) so they have two harvests a year. Fly crops are generally smaller, but overall that means, more coffee! Lucky them; lucky us.

03

Handpicking – Nespresso’s preferred method

Farmers carefully hand-harvest most of the coffee cherries for our Nespresso coffees as they usually ripen at different rates on the same branch. The entire process takes three to five trips for the farmers to handpick the perfectly riped cherries from the coffee trees, as so many still need to be left on the branches to mature.

Telling when a coffee cherry is ripe and ready to be harvested is easy: It’s bright red!

If it’s green, you’re too early, and if it’s black, you’ve waited too long.

04

The ‘Stripping’ Method – Faster but less consistent

“Stripping” is another method of harvesting. Pickers slide their hands along the branches and strip the trees of both ripe and unripe cherries, which fall onto tarpaulin underneath the tree. The coffee cherry fruit is then meticulously sorted in a machine or by hand, as even a few unripe coffee beans can affect the taste of the coffee.

05

Mechanical Harvesting – Using machines

In countries like Brazil, which have very large plantations and the land is flat, a machine is used for harvesting. This machine drives up to each tree and shakes the branches so the coffee cherry fruit falls off. The coffee cherries are then sorted in other machines which weed out the green, unripe ones.

06

Weather Conditions

Harvest time doesn’t necessarily mean amazing weather. In fact, in July when the Robusta coffee we use for our Ispirazione Palermo Kazaar ripens, you’ll need an umbrella as it rains heavily in the Espírito Santo region of Brazil’s subtropical north! As the farmers can’t dry the cherries in the sun, they use a machine set to a low temperature – and indirect heat – so as not to damage the coffee beans.

Why do we prefer to hand-pick coffee cherries?

The Art of Handpicking is without a doubt the most tedious process of harvesting. That said, there are many advantages:

  • 1
    Picking cherries individually reduces wastage of unripen coffee cherries
    2
    Improves the overall yield of the plantation, since the unripe cherries can then be harvested at a later date
  • 3
    Allows for a more efficient use of farmland. Coffee trees can be planted on steep slopes, which are common at higher altitudes where Arabica grows best. Harvesting by hand is often the preferred method in these areas or tough terrain that make it hard for machines to access.
Handpicking is also Nespresso’s preferred method for delivering on our commitment to an exceptional cup of coffee, cup after cup.

One of Nespresso's commitments is to create a better tomorrow for our farmers. We ensure that our quality coffee is deliberately created, starting with how the coffee is harvested sustainably and many other conscious choices along the coffee chain. We pay attention to the details, so that you can enjoy coffee that consistently tastes good!

Explore the full range of nespresso products