Decaffeination

Decaffeination

All decaffeination methods start by increasing the moisture content of the green (unroasted) beans, in order to make the caffeine easier to remove. A solvent is then used to extract the caffeine, and the beans are then dried and processed for shipment to the roaster. Don Francisco’s coffees are always 100% arabica coffee, which has approximately half the caffeine content of robusta coffee.

According to the FDA, all decaffeination methods must remove 97-99% of the caffeine present in order for the coffee to be sold as decaffeinated. This is 97-99% of the original caffeine content, meaning that decaffeinated coffees are, for all practical purposes, caffeine-free. While a cup of regular coffee might contain 100mg or more of caffeine, a typical cup of decaf contains less than 3 mg.

Methylene Chloride Decaffeination:

**Don Francisco's Coffee uses Methylene Chloride as our decaffeination method.**

There are two methods of methylene chloride decaffeination; direct and indirect.

In the direct contact method, the green coffee is placed in a rotating drum and softened by steam for approximately 30 minutes. The coffee is then rinsed for about 10 hours with methylene chloride, which removes caffeine.

The solvent is drained away and the beans are steamed again to evaporate any remaining solvent. Virtually no methylene chloride remains after roasting the coffee.

In the indirect contact method, sometimes referred to as the “water process”, the green coffee soaks in a water/coffee solution near boiling temperatures for several hours. The solution draws out the caffeine and unfortunately also some flavor elements and oils.

The caffeine/water mixture is drained away and treated methylene chloride, which absorbs the caffeine. The mixture is then heated to evaporate the solvent and caffeine. The newly treated mixture is then reunited with the green coffee and allowed to regain most of the coffee oils and flavor. In this method, the solvent never touches the green coffee.

Ethyl Acetate:(Steam/Natural Process)

This method is often referred to as a “natural process”, because ethyl acetate is a compound found in many fruits, such as apples, peaches and pears.

The decaffeination process is similar to the indirect method using methylene chloride. The only major difference is that ethyl acetate requires more time to absorb the caffeine.

Charcoal or Carbon:

In this indirect method, un-roasted green coffee soaks in hot water to draw out the caffeine. The solution, which contains caffeine as well as the important flavor and oil components, is then filtered through a bed of activated charcoal or carbon filters to remove only the caffeine.

The process is then the same as the other methods, where the water solution minus the caffeine is reintroduced to the green coffee.

Supercritical Carbon Dioxide:

In this method, green coffee beans are first softened by steam to bring the caffeine to the surface. Next they are soaked in carbon dioxide at a high temperature and pressure. In this “supercritical” state, the carbon dioxide acts like a liquid while remaining a gas. It penetrates the beans to extract the caffeine.

The process removes about 97% of the caffeine, and any remaining solvent dissipates as a gas when the green coffee returns to room temperature.