Everybody should believe something. I believe I’ll have more coffee. —Anon

To the sorrow of many a green-minded java junkie, conventional coffee roasting is a particularly filthy process.  It creates environment-polluting particulate matter and many volatile organic gases, including alcohols, aldehydes, organic acids, and nitrogen and sulfur compounds. Because most roasters are fueled by natural gas, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide emissions are also created. A conventional coffee roaster produces, on average, three and a half pounds of carbon dioxide per pound of coffee roasted.

Enter the ultra-low emitting Revelation roaster, manufactured by US Roaster Corp.  It produces .08 pounds of carbon dioxide per pound of coffee roasted—a savings of 97.7% over conventional roasters.  The CO2 advantage of a Revelation-roasted pound of coffee over a conventionally roasted one is equivalent to a 60-watt light bulb burning for 17 straight days!

It is an impressive sight at Laughing Whale Coffee in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.  The 18-kilogram Revelation roaster (aka “Joe Green”) has a wide, black catalytic tower that reaches from floor-to-ceiling. Smoke from the roaster spirals up into the catalytic burner, which incinerates the particulate in the smoke at a temperature of 575 degrees Fahrenheit. The byproduct is very hot air that is 98% emissions-free; it can be redirected into the roaster, used to heat the building, or released through a vent at the top of the building.

Owner Steve Zubalik, a former energy consultant, is considering using his exhaust to heat a greenhouse on the roof of the roasting facility.

According to US Roaster Corp president Dan Joliff, “The main thing driving us was to have more of a green roaster and eliminate the huge amount of greenhouse gases.  Once we started designing it, however, we noticed we could have a lot more control over the environment of the coffee by controlling air flow, pressurization, etc.  The Revelation turned out to be the perfect design for a high-quality roaster, so being green is just part of the picture. They’re a little more expensive than a conventional roaster, but they’re also more efficient and cheaper to operate, so they pay for themselves over time.”

At Laughing Whale, environmentally conscious roasting goes even further. The solid waste left from the catalytic tower (along with used coffee grounds) are given to local organic farmers for creating compost and soil conditioner—as Zubalik says, “they’re terrific for keeping wireworms away from the carrots!”

In the meantime, Dan is looking forward to increasing sales in California, as new state air quality laws prohibit the types of emissions caused by conventional roasters.  With 12 units sold already, the Revelation may just be the (air) wave of the future.