DEAS 975 : 2019  
ICS 67.140 .20 
 
 
© EA C 2019                                                                                                                               First Edition  2019   
 EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  
Instant (soluble) coffee — Specification  
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY  DEAS 975 :2019  
ii © EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  
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Violators may be pr osecuted . DEAS 975 :2019  
© EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  iii 
 Contents  Page 
Foreword  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... iv 
1 Scope  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................ 1 
2 Normative references  ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................... 1 
3 Terms and definitions  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... 2 
4 Requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...2 
4.1 General requirements ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................... 2 
4.2 Specific requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... 2 
5 Hygiene  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............. 3 
6 Contami nants  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...3 
7 Packaging  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 3 
8 Labelling  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........... 3 
9 Sampling  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........... 4 
Annex  A (normative)  Cup test  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... 5 
A.1 Evaluation for solubility  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................... 5 
A.2 Preparation of sample for cup test  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..5 
A.3 Precaution ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 5 
A.4 Evaluation  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 5 
A.4.1  Powder  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .............. 5 
A.4.2  Liquor  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................ 6 
A.4.3  Assignment  of the total score  ................................ ................................ ................................ .......... 6 
A.4.4  Score  card................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 6 
Annex  B (normative)  Determination of total ash  ................................ ................................ ........................ 8 
B.1 Procedure  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 8 
B.2 Calculation  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........ 8 
Annex  C (normative)  Determination of solubility in water  ................................ ................................ ......... 9 
C.1 Procedure  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......... 9 
C.1.1  Solubility  in Hot Water  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... 9 
C.1.2  Solubility in cold water  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... 9 
 DEAS 975 :2019  
iv © EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  
 Foreword  
Development of the East African Standards has been necessitated by the need for harmonizing requirements 
governing quality of products and services in the East African Communit y. It is envisaged that through 
harmonized standardization, trade barriers that are encountered when goods and services are exchanged 
within the Community will be removed.  
The Community has established an East African Standards Committee  (EASC)  mandated t o develop and 
issue East African Standards  (EAS) . The Committee is composed of representatives of the National 
Standards Bodies in Partner States, together with the representatives from the public and private sector 
organizations  in the community .  
East Af rican Standards are developed through  Technical Committees that are representative of key 
stakeholders including government, academia, consumer groups, private sector and other interested parties. 
Draft East African Standards are circulated to stakeholders  through the National Standards Bodies in the 
Partner States. The comments received are discussed and incorporated before finalization of standards, in 
accordance with the Principles and procedures for development of East African Standards. XXXXXX.  
East Af rican Standards are subject to review, to keep pace with technological advances. Users of the East 
African Standards are therefore expected to ensure that they always have the latest versions of the standards 
they are implementing .  
The committee responsib le for this document is Technical Committee EASC/TC 002, Coffee, tea, cocoa and 
related products.  
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be subject of patent 
rights. EAC shall not be held responsible for identi fying any or all such patent rights.  EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  DEAS 975 :2019  
 
© EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  1 
 Instant (soluble) coffee — Specification  
1 Scope   
This Draft East African Standard specifies requirements and methods of sampling and test for Instant (soluble) 
coffee.  This standard applies to decaffeinated instant co ffee 
2 Normative references   
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes 
requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, 
the la test edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.  
AOAC 2000.09, Ochratoxin A in Roasted Coffee Immunoaffinity Column HPLC Method  
EAS 38, General Standard for the Labelling of Pre -packaged Foods  
EAS 39, Hygiene in the food and drin k manufacturing industry — Code of practice  
EAS 105,  Roasted coffee beans and roasted ground coffee –Specification  
ISO 3509 , Coffee and coffee products — Vocabulary  
ISO 4832 , Microbiology of food and animal feeding stuffs — Horizontal method for the enumera tion of 
coliforms — Colony -count technique  
ISO 4833 -1, Microbiology of the food chain — Horizontal method for the enumeration of microorganisms — 
Part1: Colony count at 30 degrees C by the pour plate technique  
ISO 6579 -1, Microbiology of the food chain — Horizontal method for the detection, enumeration and 
serotyping of Salmonella — Part 1: Detection of Salmonella spp.  
ISO 21527 -2, Microbiology of food and animal feeding stuffs — Horizontal method for the enumeration of 
yeasts and moulds — Part 2: Colony co unt technique in products with water activity less than or equal to 0.95  
ISO 3726, Instant coffee —  Determination of loss in mass at 70 degrees C under reduced pressure  
ISO 6670, Instant coffee — Sampling method for bulk units with liners  
ISO 20481, Coffee and coffee products — determination of the caffeine content using HPLC — Reference 
method  
ISO 11292, Instant coffee — Determination of free and total carbohydrate contents —  Method using high -
performance anion -exchange chromatography  
ISO 24114 , Instan t coffee —  Criteria for authenticity  
  
2 © EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  
 3 Terms and definitions  
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in  ISO 3509  and the following apply.  
3.1 
instant (soluble)coffee  
dried, water -soluble product, obtained exclusively from roas ted coffee by physical methods using water as the 
only carrying agent that is not derived from coffee  
3.2 
decaffeinated coffee  
coffee from which caffeine has been removed by extraction  
4 Requirements  
4.1 General requirements  
Instant coffee shall:  
a) be made f rom coffee complying with DEAS 105;  
b) be free flowing;  
c) have the colour and flavour characteristic of coffee when evaluated in accordance with Annex A;  
d) be free from foreign and extraneous matter;  
e) not contain chicory or any other added substances; and  
f) comply with criteria of authenticity prescribed in ISO 24114.  
4.2 Specific requirements  
Instant coffee shall comply with specific requirements given in table 1 when tested in accordance with test 
methods specified therein . 
Table 1 — Specific requirements  
S/No  Characteristic  Requirements  Method of test  
(i) Moisture, percent by mass, max.  4a ISO 3726  
(ii) Total ash (only dry basis), percent by mass 
max.  15.0 Annex B  
(iii) Caffeine content (on dry basis), percent by 
mass, min.  2.8b ISO 20481  
(iv) Solubility in b oiling water  Dissolves readily in 30 seconds 
with moderate stirring  
Annex C  
(v) Solubility in cold water at 16 ºC ± 2 ºC, min.  Soluble with moderate stirring in 
3 minutes  
a) For granulated coffee the maximum moisture content shall be 5 % by mass.  
b) For decaffeinated instant coffee the maximum limit shall be 0,3% by mass  
  
© EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  3 
 5 Hygiene  
5.1 Instant coffee shall be processed, packaged, stored and distributed under hygienic conditions in 
accordance  with EAS 39.  
5.2 Instant coffee shall not exceed the microbiol ogical limits in Table 2  
Table 2  — Microbiological limits for  instant coffee  
S/N  Microorganism   Limit   Test method  
i.  Total plate count , cfu/ g, max   103 ISO 4833 -1 
ii.  Coliforms cfu/ g max.   <10 ISO 4832  
iii.  Salmonella spp  per 25 g max.   Absent  ISO 6579 -1 
iv.  Yeast and moulds cfu/ g, max   102  ISO 21527 -2 
6 Contaminants  
6.1 Mycotoxin  
When tested in accordance with AOAC 2000.09, the level of Ochratoxin A in instant coffee shall not  exceed 
10 μg/kg.  
6.2 Pesticide residues  
Instant coffee shall not contain leve ls of pesticide residues, in e xcess of limits established by Codex 
Alimentarius C ommission  
6.3  Heavy metal  
Instant coffee shall not exceed the maximum limits of heavy metals in table 3  
Table 3  — Heavy metal limits  in instant coffee  
S/N Heavy metal  Limits  (mg/kg) max  Test method  
i.  Lead  0.5 AOAC 999.10  
ii.  Cadmium  0.1 
7 Packaging  
Instant coffee shall be packaged in air tight food grade containers which safeguard the quality of the product.  
8 Labelling  
In addition to information stipulated in EAS 38, the following labelling requirements shall be marked legibly 
and indelibly on the label:  
a) name of t he product as Instant/ soluble coffee;  
b) name and physical address of the manufacturer;  
c) net content;   
4 © EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  
 d) form of the product ; 
e) date of manufacture;  
f) expiry date;  
g) storage instructions;  
h) instructions for use ; 
i) batch/lot number;  and 
j) country of origin . 
9 Sampling  
Sampling of instant coffee shall be done in accordance with ISO 6670.  
  
© EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  5 
 Annex  A 
(normative)  
 
Cup test  
A.1 Evaluation for solubility  
Weigh 2.5 g of instant coffee powder into a 500 -mL beaker. Then pour 150 mL of freshly boiled water and 
examine. The solubility will be considered as ‘good’ if the material dissolves within 30 sec; ‘fair’ if between 30 -
40 sec, and ‘poor’ if over 40 sec. For ‘good, fair and poor solubility’, assign 5.3 and 1 mark respectively. If 
solubility is poor and lumps are found floating on the surface, no mark should be assigned  
A.2 Preparation of sample for cup test  
A.2.1  Weigh 2.5 g of soluble coffee powder in a clean, non -smelling watch glass;  
A.2.2  Observe the colour and granularity;  
A.2.3  Transfer the material (in A.2.1) to a 150 mL porcelain bowl;  
A.2.4  Take one part of previous boiled hot milk and add to it two parts of freshly boiled water and pour 150 
mL of this mixture  over the instant coffee p owder in the porcelain bowl. The temperature of the mixture should 
not be less than 90 ºC at the time of pouring over the coffee;  
A.2.5  Add 2 g - 3 g of sugar, stir and smell; and  
A.2.6  Allow to cool to about  60 ºC and evaluate  
NOTE  Evaluation should be completed before the brew gets cold . 
A.3 Precaution  
A.3.1  The cup test should  preferably be conducted an hour after breakfast and an hour before lunch.  
A.3.2  The panelists should record  their reactions in the proforma immediately after evaluating an attribu te. 
A.3.3  In one session not more than 4 samples should be tested  
A.4 Evaluation  
Evaluate the soluble coffee powder and the liquor qualities according to the score card given in A.4.4. If more 
than one sample is required to evaluate at one time the score c ard may be modified accordingly.  
A.4.1  Powder   
Depending on the degree of the defects classified under suspicion, slight or pronounced, deduct 1, 2 or 3 
marks respectively. If the powder is caked, no marks assigned.   
6 © EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  
 A.4.2  Liquor  
Depending on the degree of the defects, the marks deducted should be: 5 for suspicion, 10 for slight and 15 
for pronounced.  
A.4.3  Assignment  of the total score  
A.4.3.1  On the basis of the combined score (of powder and liquor qualities), the final evaluation shall be  
categorized as f ollows:  
Table A.1 — Final evaluation scores  
Excellent  Good  Fair Poor  Unacceptable  
31-35 21-30 16-20 10-15 Below 10  
 
A.4.3.2  The soluble coffee powder shall be deemed to have passed the test if the net score is above 20.  
A.4.4  Score  card  
The details are g iven below:  
 
SCORE CARD  
Name:………………………………………….  Date:………………………………………………..  
 
Batch/Code 
No………………………………….  Time………………………………………………….  
 
Assign scores for each quality attribute  
Quality attribute  Max score  Score  
Powder  
Test for solubility  5 ...........  
Colou r appeal   5 .........  
Granular structure – whether even or 
uneven  5 .........  
NOTE  If the powder is specks (containing black particles), and/or uneven with powder , 
dusty appearance the degree of each defect may be indicated as suspicion, slight or 
pronounced.  
Liquor  Max score  Score  
Colour (body)  5 ...........  
Strength (overall feeling of thickness 
(body), bite and acidity  9 .........   
© EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  7 
 Flavour  10 .........  
Indicate, if any, the degree of defects, such as the following by denoting suspicion, slight o r 
pronounced.  
Oily: 
Burnt:  
Bland:  
Stale:  
Harsh:  
Sour:  
Cheesy:  
Sediment:  
                                                                                         ________________________ ___ 
                                                                                                            (Signature)  
 
 
 
 
 
  
8 © EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  
 Annex  B 
(normative)  
 
Determination of total ash  
B.1 Procedure  
Weigh accurately 5 g of the material in dry tarred porcelain dish. Heat slow ly over a flame until swelling 
ceases. Ignite in a muffle furnace at 550 ºC ± 10 ºC till grey ash results. Cool the dish in a desiccator and 
weigh. Repeat this process of heating for 30 min cooling and weighing till the difference in weight between two 
successive weightings is less than one milligram.  Note the lowest weight  
B.2 Calculation  
Total ash (on dry basis) percent by weight  
 
 
 
Where;  
W weight is g of the empty dish,  
   W1 weight in g of the dish with the material taken for the test,  
M percentage moisture as determined in ISO 3726; and  
 W2 weight in g of the dish with the ash.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
© EAC 2019  – All rights reserved  9 
 Annex  C 
(normative)  
 
Determination of solubility in water  
C.1 Procedure  
C.1.1  Solubility  in Hot Water  
Add 150 mL of freshly boiling water to 2.5 g of sample placed in a 500 -mL beaker. The coffee powder shall be 
readily soluble with moderate stirring within 30 sec, leaving no appreciable sediment.  
C.1.2  Solubility in cold water  
Place 2.5 g of t he sample in a 500 -mL beaker and add 50 mL of water at 16 ºC ± 2 ºC the powder  shall be 
soluble with moderate stirring in 3 min, leaving no appreciable sediment.  DEAS 975 :2019    
 
© EAC 2019  – All rights reserved