What is green coffee appearance?

Green coffee appearance is a physical assessment of unroasted beans - primarily the defect count per 300-gram sample and the screen size distribution. It's an early quality indicator used in grading, pre-shipment checks, and informal evaluation before roasting.

The SCA grading system categorises defects into primary (full black, full sour, dried cherry, fungal damage) and secondary (partial defects, floaters, broken beans), with penalty points assigned to each category. Specialty grade requires zero primary defects and five or fewer secondary defects per 300g.

Beyond defect counting, appearance covers colour consistency - vibrant green or bluish-green signals freshness; yellowing suggests ageing - and screen size uniformity, which indicates even sorting. A clean, consistent appearance doesn't guarantee a great cup, but an inconsistent one is usually a warning sign worth investigating before you commit to buying or roasting.