Beneficio updates nearly complete

We are very excited about the improvements and additions we've made to our coffee beneficio this year, and soon we will be receiving coffee from this harvest for processing. Below are photos of the construction over the last few weeks.

Martir spreads cement on the outer walls of the biosand filter for the upper water tank. This will provide filtered water for use in fermenting, washing and sorting coffee.

Gilberto helps sort stones of various sizes to be used in the biosand filter, while the rest of the stones make up the road leading to the beneficio for trucks carrying coffee.

Our coffee processing center receives a roof of teja – clay tiles – to protect the tanks, coffee, and those who are working, from rain and direct sun. 

The fermentation tanks have gotten a beautiful – and practical – makeover with a new drainage system and tiles lining the tanks. The drainage system will facilitate washing of coffee, and the tiles are designed to improve coffee quality by being easy to clean and resistant to wear.

The receiving tanks have been redesigned to use less water during sorting and moving of coffee. These tanks, as well as the correteo, have been painted to protect them from sun damage and help keep them clean.

We have three solar dryers up, and one more on the way, to provide more space for drying coffee in a protected environment.

The vermiculture has received a drainage system to allow excess water to drain from the area where coffee pulp will be turned into organic fertilizer. The worms and the microorganisms are ready for coffee pulp!

Our new sorting equipment was custom built by a local coffee equipment maker. It will separate out improperly de-pulped coffee from the rest. One more piece of sorting equipment is still being built and we will add this to the process soon.