There are no coffee beans that grow caffeine-free, so decaffeinating coffee is something that must be done manually after the coffee is harvested (but before the coffee is roasted). According to the FDA, a coffee needs to be 97% caffeine free in order to be considered “decaf.” The challenge in decaffeinating coffee is to remove the caffeine without removing any of the other chemical properties, which lead to the distinctively bold taste of the coffee beans.
Decaffeinating methods can be split into two categories: Solvent-Based and Water-Process. Within the solvent-based category, there are two different decaffeinating methods.
Learn more about the decaffeinating process by clicking on the images above!