Maximizing Coffee Washing Station Profits: Results from Field Experiments
For AFCA 2025, TechnoServe shares research and guidelines for improving coffee cup quality and wet mill profitability.
Cup quality is the principal driver of a coffee’s market value and the income that farmers earn. While it is generally understood that pulper calibration, cherry ripeness and fermentation techniques influence coffee cup quality, efforts to quantify these impacts have been limited. As a result, coffee washing station management often prioritizes efficiency over these considerations.
At the 2025 Africa Fine Coffee Association Conference and Exhibition, TechnoServe will present findings from field trials that its partner Arkena conducted in Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia, demonstrating how much money is being lost due to poor pulper calibration and the impact of cherry ripeness and fermentation technique on cup quality.
Field Experiment Reports
- Fermentation Experiment Report: Studying the effect of fermentation type on cup scores and overall time to completion with the hopes of identifying a fermentation type that reduces costs and promotes cup quality
- Cherry Ripeness Experiment Report: Investigating the impact of coffee cherry delivery composition on cup quality
Wet Mill Resources
- Coffee Wet Mill Processing Guide: A comprehensive resource to provide wet mill managers in East Africa with guidelines on preserving Arabica coffee bean quality during wet mill processing
