Each berry contains two green beans or seeds. When the berries are ripe, the trees are sometimes shaken and the berries picked from the ground or the branches are stripped of everything at once, and the ripe berries are picked out from a cluster of leaves and flowers. The berries are then hulled by either using the dry or wet method. Using the dry method, the berries are sun-dried for three weeks, then hulled by machine. The wet method requires the berries to be washed first, hulled by machine, then partially fermented before being given a final washing.
Some countries also polish their beans.
It takes approximately 4,000 berries to produce 1kg of coffee. Coffee beans can be classified into three main types. The finest coffee comes from coffea arabica and has a low caffeine content. Coffee canaphora, which produces the robusta, is a strong, high caffeine type, but of inferior quality. Finally, there is coffee liberica, which is very productive but mediocre in taste.