First, we need to distinguish by-products and co-products. By-products come from the post-harvest processing of coffee, unlike co-products.

Co-products are mainly honey and coffee leaves, which can be infused like tea. We could also talk about the wood from the coffee tree, which is of very high quality and can be used to produce a very rich vegetable charcoal to naturally fertilise the soil and sequester CO2.

Cascara, or pulp, is a by-product recovered after coffee processing. 

When it comes from washed coffee, drying cascara requires a certain expertise in moisture management. As it is highly susceptible to mould, it should not dry for too long. But if it is dried too quickly, it loses its organoleptic qualities.

Natural coffee cascara is recovered after the cherries have been dried and hulled. To obtain it, the hull is separated from the remains of the parchment, which would gives the cascara a papery, straw-like flavour. This separation is done by density, in a machine that separates the lighter elements (the parchment) from the denser ones that we want to keep (the cascara).

The first person to benefit from this interest in co and by-products is the producer. As well as being a source of additional income, as you might imagine, working with co and by-products is a good farming practice.

If a farmer starts producing honey, he'll be encouraging bees to pollinate his coffee trees, and therefore the productivity of his trees. Although there is still a lot to learn on this subject, many benefits have already been observed, particularly for coffee fruit set and the quality of the beans (density, homogeneity).

As far as coffee leaves are concerned, harvesting them by removal allows new buds to appear, which are no longer inhibited by the previous buds, and produce new branches. Here again, there is a gain in productivity, as Arabica coffee needs new wood to produce fruits.

However, these products from coffee production also serve to nourish the coffee trees by mineralising in the soil in the form of natural inputs, in preparation for next harvests, as organic inputs.

The challenge is to find a way to compensate what is extracted from the plantation. For example, in the case of pulp, which contributes to potassium in the soil, we need to find a source of potassium capable of compensating for the loss.

One of the major difficulties faced by growers is recruiting seasonal labour. In Guatemala, for example, migration to the United States is undermining the industry. In other regions, growers have to hire seasonal workers who come from further and further away from the farms, and are obliged to house them in conditions that are often difficult.

In this context, coffee by and co-products can be an opportunity to maintain a quasi-permanent workforce, by enabling growers to offer work on a more regular basis, outside the harvest seasons.

Ensuring a long-term supply is at the heart of our concerns. This can only be achieved by ensuring that farms can be passed on from generation to generation.

Adding value to by-products and co-products, by improving the income of producers and the profitability of farms, helps to ensure the long-term viability and sustainability of the sector, and motivates us to extend our range to include all these products.

Our range can includes cascara and leaves from Finca Irlanda in Mexico, Santa Isabel in Guatemala and Terrazas del Pisque in Ecuador. And soon, honeys from Brazilian coffee trees.

Jacques, our Sourcing Director in Africa, told me that in Ethiopia, cascara has always been consumed, like infused coffee leaves.

Among our partner producers in Ethiopia, Habtamu Abebe already produces classic tea (Camelia Sinensis) and has the facilities and knowledge to produce green, white or black tea from the leaves of its coffee plants.

So why is the subject of co-products so new to Belco? Well, cascara was only authorised for sale in the European Union very recently, in 2021, mainly for health reasons.

And, this authorisation was not enough for us. We had to make sure that the cascara was compliant and posed no health risk. We took the time to do some research. With the Quality team, we found a way to pasteurise our cascara at a low temperature (80°C), using steam, so that we can offer you cascara that has no health risk.

At a time we have all questions to answer about the sustainability of our industry, and the profitability and transferability of coffee farms, why not try these co-products and by-products to help improve producers' incomes, and venture into a new taste experience?