Equipment needed for Micro Roaster?

[Cowboy905]

I apologize if this has been covered. I tried the Forum Search, Google Custom Search, and Advanced Search and I still couldn't find out what i needed.

I'm looking to start a roasting business here in Toronto. I'm going to start small with maybe a YM2 or YM5 or something and sell at Farmers Markets and online and eventually hoping to expand into smaller markets.

Can someone tell me what equipment i need to get this business up and running?

I know i need a roaster...as i only have a Behmor right now. But in terms of other equipment, what do i need? Should i have a grinder or can i just sell whole beans? what else is needed? (packagers?)

please and thank you.

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[CoffeeJunky]

You definitely need grinder. I would get bunn grinder with different setting. They grind around 3 pounds per grind.

Bunn G3 Coffee Grinder Black 22100 0000 | eBay

U can also buy used one for about 300 dollars....

You need bags and packaging material and cups..

paper cup | Paper Hot/ Cold Cup - 10 oz. (Item No. 4943-10) from only 11¢ ready to be imprinted by 4imprint Promotional Products.
North Atlantic Bags

Also you should sell brewed coffee... or have sample size....

You need table. Your logo banner with your phone number and address if you want to...
Business card. Your advertizing coupons.

Most of the fresh Roasted Coffee need some time to degasing process so you should get bag with release valve or brown paper bag with your logo sticker on it...
You should have few bags pre-roasted for the taste and to sell... Cash register...

That is about it....

Coffee Roaster.
Coffee Grinder
Coffee packaging bags
Coffee Cups
Coffee Filters
Coffee Brewer
Air Pots

Scale and few bins and measuring scoops
Tape and pen (have different color)

[Cowboy905]

Thank you! this is an amazing list.

do you roasters manually scoop the coffee, weight it, and bag it yourself or is there a machine that most people use?

[CoffeeJunky]

Manually... And when you get busy, get better bag sealer... Two people can package tons of coffee...

[topher]

I am a micro roaster. I roast on a 60 kilo Ambex. I use 2 G2 Bunn Grinders. I went with the 2 because I usually only grind 1 lb at a time for retail. I have 2 MPE grinders for wholesale accounts GPX Series Gourmet / Specialty Commercial & Industrial Coffee Grinders | MPE Chicago they grind about 500 lbs an hour. for bagging I use a Prox Pack MP-5 so much nicer than bagging by hand! It isn't that expensive either! I have to sealers. I use a direct heat sealer for my retail bags and a band sealer for wholesale coffee. Good luck and let us know what you end up going with

[Cowboy905]

incredible. You are what a aspire to be.

crunching my numbers now, i'm am getting the Bunn G3 used, I will be sourcing a ambex ym2 or ym5 used, and i'll be manually bagging to start. I can only hope to run into the issue of fulfilling orders.

[CoffeeJunky]

Try your best to minimized the start up cost... Try to reserve as much cash as possible. Equipment are always can be bought later time....

[Defaun]

I am not sure if this can work because of the distance between us but I happen to have a small line for sale. I have (all commercial) a 7k roaster, a grinder, a mixer/blender & a packing machine. The roaster & grinder were bought new & have had very minimal use (like 3-4 times) The packer is a Verticle form fill seal that can make fractional packs as small as 1oz to institutional bags up to 10 lbs. It already has one way valve applicator & a brand new printer that can do printing on your film as the machine is making the bag. I can even supply some film for you to learn the machine on. Either way, this line is being sold & we would make a good deal on the package deal. I registered on this site to seek out the right person for this equipment & yours was the first post I read. Even if we can't make a deal I can help you out with what you need to get started.

[eldub]

I think its best to start out with a roaster you can grow into rather than out of. I'd go with a minimum of 5 kg roasting capacity to start. You can roast a couple of pounds at a time or twelve. While I like to roast beans, I have enough to do around the shop to not want to spend all day, every day roasting a pound or two at a time to fill orders. Our smallest wholesale account takes five lbs at a time. Our largest can take up to 54 lbs at once.

[expat]

For your farmer's market, besides "table, logo, banner" as was suggested, you should have a canopy of some sort for when it rains. Also does the FM supply electricity? Mine doesn't so I have to bring a generator with me to use to boil water.

As to labels for your bags that can be quite time consuming -- it sure is for me -- so you might just want to use a big rubber stamp (if you've got a kraft paper bag) and keep things simple.

For coffee bags at the market I'm sure the bags with the fold over metal 'tangs' will be just fine so you wouldn't need the heat sealer for that. Also those bags breathe since they aren't tightly sealed so you wouldn't need the more expensive bag with the freshness valve. And for online sales, if you're roasting and shipping within a couple three days you could probably stick with the 'tang bag' to start with and then see how things go.

Oh, get to the FM early. The smell of coffee brewing will bring over all the people setting up stalls and you can jump-start your day with some quick 6am cash.