Sep 12, 2007 12:37 am US/Pacific
Good Question: How's Caffeine Removed From Coffee?
by Pallas Hupé
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―
I'm going to admit I can't get through my day without several cups of coffee. In fact if you take a look at my favorite mug, it says 'coffee is my best friend'. But toward the end of the day, I have to switch to decaf.
Have you ever wondered how they get the caffeine out of the bean?
Kerry Sachs co-founded Puroast, a locally owned gourmet coffee roasting business.
Except for the decaffeination, Sachs does everything on the premises in Woodland, and says decaffeinating beans is a pretty sophisticated business.
"Only a few places in the world actually decaffeinate coffee beans, because technically, it is so specialized and valuable. It's actually a very closely guarded secret," said Sachs.
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LINK:
Puroast Low Acid Coffee____________
Regular coffee beans are usually green, but decaffeinated is a completely different color!
Sachs explains there are different process to take the caffeine out of the bean. According to Coffeeresearch.org, in Swiss Water, carbon dioxide and sparkling water process, the coffee beans are soaked in each. The caffeine is then extracted from what's left.
"It comes out as a gas, as best I understand it, and then condensed into a liquid and sold," said Sachs.
That's when Sachs say decaffeinaters really cash in.
"They charge the coffee industry for extracting caffeine and then they sell the caffeine to pharmaceuticals or to companies like Coca-Cola," said Sachs.
Sachs says these processes take close to 99 percent of the caffeine out of the beans. Even though it's growing in popularity, more people are being told not to drink coffee because it's too acidic. But, Puroast claims low acid on their coffee packages.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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