What Do "SS" and "FC" Mean in Brazilian Coffee? How is Brazilian Coffee Graded?

Brazil is the world's largest coffee producer, holding an important position in the global coffee market. Its coffee exports account for one-third of the global market, but its flavor is not outstanding, with low acidity, high sweetness, and a mellow body, so it often appears in blended coffees. However, when purchasing Brazilian coffee, you will find a series of English letters and numbers on the burlap bags, such as "CERRADO NY-2 SC-17/18 SS FC". What do these English letters and numbers specifically mean?

Brazilian Green Coffee Classification System

This brings us to the classification of Brazilian green coffee beans, which was established by the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MAPA). It typically consists of specific producing regions, defect grading, coffee bean particle size, cupping scores, and sensory grading.

First, Brazil is vast and rich in resources. Among its 26 states, 17 states produce coffee. These states are simultaneously coffee-producing regions, and each region is further divided into multiple sub-regions. Therefore, coffee beans from a single producing region are specifically identified. For example, "CERRADO" refers to the Cerrado sub-region. Other common regions include Mogiana (MOGIANA) and South Minas (SUL DE MINAS). Additionally, some may indicate port names, such as Santos, which represents the Brazilian port of Santos.

Defect Classification System

Brazil's green coffee bean defect classification originates from the Green Coffee Association of New York, hence it begins with "NY". The highest grade in Brazil is "NY2". Because Brazil considers coffee as an agricultural product and due to Brazil's special plain geographical advantages, through purely mechanized harvesting, although it can save labor, it affects the coffee specialty level to some extent. Therefore, zero defects are impossible, so the highest grade starts from 2 rather than 1.

The following numbers are defect proportion classifications, divided into 2, 2/3, 3, 3/4, 4, and so on. The larger the classification, the higher the defect proportion. Usually, a "deduction method" is used, grading based on how many defective beans are in 300 grams of green beans.

Screen Size and Cupping Scores

After defect classification, fixed-size screens are used to grade the coffee bean size. "SC" represents the screen size, commonly 17/18, 16/17. Additionally, Brazil has both normal flat beans and round beans. Normal flat beans typically range from 10 to 19 screens, while round beans range from 8 to 13 screens. Although the maximum size in Brazil is 19 screens, production is extremely limited, so 17 and 18 screens are already the highest grades.

After grading, sample beans are roasted and then cupped. The cupping scoring method borrows from the cupping scoring method of the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). It is divided into Strictly Soft (SS), Soft (S), Softish, Hard, Hardish, Rioy/Rioysh, and Rio. Among these, "SS" is the highest level, with a basic score of 85 or above. The next is "S" grade, with cupping scores between 80-84. Following that is "Softish", with cupping scores between 75-79.

Flavor Profile Classification

The final component is the flavor profile, which is usually divided into six grades: Fine Cup, Fine, Good Cup, Fair Cup, Poor Cup, and Bad Cup. The most common are Fine Cup (FC) and Good Cup (GC).

In summary, BRAZIL NY-2 SC-17/18 SS FC CERRADO means: produced in the Cerrado region of Brazil, defect grade 2, green bean screen size 17-18, excellent cup quality. This is also the Brazilian component bean that FrontStreet Coffee has been using in its blended coffee.

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