Milima Kenya Coffee Policy on Harvesting/Post Harvest Handling

Only red ripe coffee cherry will be picked, the coffee will only be hand-picked, no coffee that is lying on the ground (soil) will be collected and put together with fresh coffee.

The picking, transport, weighing, and processing will be done observing high hygiene and reduced contamination measures.

Dry parchment coffee should be handled under hygienic conditions to avoid contamination and maintain quality.

Is coffee from Kenya good? Harvesting/Post Harvest Handling procedures

Hygiene procedures

• All harvesting containers must be washed and sun dried.
• Cherries picked from the ground are not processed.
• Coffee processing should be done within 24 hours from picking.

Post harvesting handling

• Sorting cherry is by the producer and supervised by the factory manager.
• The record clerk will weigh the sorted and accepted coffee.
• The farmer will be given a copy of the weight of the cherry received.
• The weighed coffee will be in the hands of the factory manager.
• The cherry shall be processed within 24 hours from the time of picking.
• After pulping the parchment will be put in fermentation tanks for not more than 72 hours.
• The parchment will be washed and pre-graded into P1, P2, P3, and P4.
• The graded coffee will be put on skin drying tables to remove excess moisture from the surface and this may take 4-6 hours depending on the weather.
• The parchment is then moved to the drying tables for the final drying process to reduce the moisture content up to a maximum of 12% drying.
• The parchment coffee will be stored in the conditioning bins awaiting delivery to the millers.
• The coffee will be delivered in bags and the most important aspect at this point is the total number of bags and their cumulative weight.
• The factory manager will request the miller for booking to deliver the coffee for milling.
• The miller will issue a booking slip which the factory will use to get a movement permit from the CBK(coffee board of Kenya).
• The factory will arrange to deliver the coffee in secure vehicle to avoid mix-up of the certified coffee. The coffee will leave the factory with a delivery note.
• On receipt of coffee, the miller will weigh the truck and the coffee and issue a weighbridge ticket.
• The miller will issue a detailed account of the coffee received detailing the actual weight, the location of the coffee in the stores, sample coffee for future reference, and issue a delivery statement with a specific number identifying that particular (out-turn number) this will from the main point of traceability to the certified coffee.

Work instructions

• The delivered cherry will undergo wet processing, this requires a lot of water and generates a lot of waste that needs to be accessed and monitored on a continuous basis.
• Cherry should be sorted properly to remove under ripe, over ripe, disease and pest-infected berries. Foreign materials such as twigs, stones, and leaves should also be removed.
• Proper disposal of the sorted material that needs to be disposed should be carried out at the factory.
• Shorting sheds and tarpaulins should always be cleaned after use.
• Sorting surface should be cemented, smooth, and free of cracks.
• Received Mbuni from farmers at the end of the season should be inspected and moisture level established before storage.
• The water for the purpose must come from a sustainable source. NEMA report is important for this purpose.
• The parchment should be dried to the acceptable MC(moisture content) so as to prevent fungal infection.
• Thorough cleaning of machinery, fermentation tanks, and channels is vital.
• Use clean water for pulping, washing, and soaking.
• Cherry to be pulped on the day it is delivered.
• Records to be maintained for the parchment stored, delivery to mills.
• Storage facilities to be well ventilated and clean.
• Bags should be placed on wooden pallets to avoid rewetting.
• Bags should be kept away from the walls.
• Inspect for pests such as rodents and regularly control them.
• Spillage of parchment on the floor to be avoided.
• Check the roofing regularly for possible points of leakage and repair any leakages.

Responsibilities allocation

• The factory manager is responsible for the factory supervision.
• The machine operator is in charge of the pulping, fermentation, washing, and drying.
• Cherry and stores clerk is responsible of storage of coffee, and resale stores.

What he/she should keep in mind:

1. Every 200 bags will be labelled as a batch.
2. Each batch will be identified in such a way that all those who contributed to it can be traced.
3. Maintain regular waterflow and correct cherry intake.
4. Monitor the operation of the pre grader to ensure proper separation of grades.
5. Fermentation should not take les than 24 hours and not more than 72 hours.
6. Use re-circulation water, dry ferment, and practice intermediate washing.
7. Use wooded or non-abrasive materials for stirring and intermediate washing of wet parchment to accelerate fermentation.
8. Soaking of good quality coffee to be carried out for around 16 hours to attain good results.
9. Grading of coffee in the washing channels to parchment 1,2,3, and lights should be done using a stream of water.
10. Ensure gradual drying of coffee from 55% M.C after washing to 45% M.C after washing to about 10.5- 12.5% for safe storage.
11. Skin drying reduces the moisture from 55% – 45% M.C, parchment not to be left in the skin drying tables overnight.
12. Skin drying tables should be clean and contain no coffee from previous processing.
13. At white stage, moisture reduction is from 45% – 30% M.C. heap at center between 10:30 am to 3:00 pm to avoid parchment cracking.
14. Use Hessian cloth, sisal-tex as drying materials.
15. At soft black stage, the parchment reduces 30% – 20% M.C and sun drying for 50 hours of sunshine is recommended. Heaping and rewetting to be avoided.
16. During black stage, moisture levels moves from 20% – 11% M.C.

Records kept

• Receiving cherry.
• Puling records.
• Fermentation records.
• Soaking records.
• Skin drying and drying tables.
• Conditioning bins.
• Storage bins.

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