Mobile Roasting

[CoffeeJunky]

Bald Guy in NC started out with a Sprinter and a San Franciscan at markets. There are a lot of things to think about here, which is why I have only thought and not acted yet. Coffee roasting is sensitive to the climate. Back when I had a wholesale shop I could see differences in my machine as winter turned to spring and then again to fall. This brings up some thoughts:

1. How will you control climate in a trailer/truck so you can roast in winter? Summer?
2. I just roasted 16 consecutive batches on the machine in the shop and I was sweating by the time I was done.
3. What roaster would you use? I currently roast on a US Roaster. The 3 kilo machine weighs 400lbs and has a 3'x4' footprint. That is a lot of space.

Just things to consider.

Feel free to pm me or email if you want to kick the ideas around further.

Shep

To roast coffee in BBQ grill in farmers market is not very appealing for my taste.
I do roast my own coffee using home made roaster I made using bbq grill but I don't think I bring out the consistent quality to actually sell to the customers.

I think if you are trying to target Farmers Market, you should get 1 or 2 kg small roaster and roast for the show but bring 30-50 pounds of pre roasted coffee(day before) and pre-package them and sell them.
Yes you can also sell the coffee you roast in farmers market but I would never try to sell my own beans that I roast on my bbq grill at the farmers market because sometimes you will get the bad batch of beans if you are in hurry.

You can normally pick up a used small roaster for around 3-5,000 dollars and they do not weight more then 150 pounds.

 

[PinkRose]

One of our (currently inactive) Forum members used to do what CoffeeJunky suggested, but at a smaller scale.

He would roast a lot of coffee the day before and pre-package it. Then he would go to the Farmers Markets or other events and set up his area and roast coffee on a home-size roaster. I think he was using either a Nesco Roaster or a GeneCafe Roaster. He did the roasting mainly to get people's attention. It was mainly for the "show" and the fresh roasted coffee aroma lured in the customers. He didn't sell the coffee that he roasted there because, like CoffeeJunky said, anything can happen, and sometimes you end up with a not-so-good result when you roast coffee in less than ideal places.

 

[BuzzRoaster]

The only problem with a purpose built roaster is the air quality issues you are opening yourself up to. You have to add in permit costs and some towns require afterburners for coffee roasters which are very expensive and not very portable.

I've never had anybody tell me I need a permit or an afterburner for my BBQ.

As far as the quality and consistency of my product, just ask my clients.

 

[Shep]

To roast coffee in BBQ grill in farmers market is not very appealing for my taste.
I do roast my own coffee using home made roaster I made using bbq grill but I don't think I bring out the consistent quality to actually sell to the customers.

I think if you are trying to target Farmers Market, you should get 1 or 2 kg small roaster and roast for the show but bring 30-50 pounds of pre roasted coffee(day before) and pre-package them and sell them.
Yes you can also sell the coffee you roast in farmers market but I would never try to sell my own beans that I roast on my bbq grill at the farmers market because sometimes you will get the bad batch of beans if you are in hurry.

You can normally pick up a used small roaster for around 3-5,000 dollars and they do not weight more then 150 pounds.

Agreed. I was talking about using a commercial roaster, not a grill or home machine. If you are in business, I think you need to look legitimate.

 

[BuzzRoaster]

Thanks for the heads up Shep. This whole time I thought I was a legitimate business.

I started out mobile roasting part time. I built a pretty big client base, some of which found me roasting at Farmers Markets. They seemed to think I was legitimate enough. They have all become faithful customers without any complaints.

My business is legitimate enough to keep me, my wife and five kids fed and living a pretty decent life. Decent enough that I quit my job to do this full time because it offers me more freedom and more money.

Off the top of my head I can think of five people that I built roasters for that are roasting full time and making a decent living. Try telling them they are not running a legitimate business.

 

[CoffeeLovers]

A mobile roasting business can be a great idea but you need to get ready of the tedious job of this business, which is transferring from one place to another. The trailer you need is equipped with the complete facilities including a general set and other accessories. You may spend bigger amount in starting this kind of business but in the long run, you can recover them.

Good luck!

 

[raks321]

Done!! u still doing it????? :roll::decaf::coffeecup:

 

[Shep]

Sorry, I didn't mean for that statement to sound offensive. Wasn't my intent.

Shep

 

[Bardo]

Update. I seem to be going full circle here. I ended up building my own BBQ roaster and 10 lb drum along the lines of Buzz's products. I have been roasting and selling under my Shellback Coffee name since January of this year. Recently I was offered the opportunity to buy a roastery and restaurant at fire sale prices and have been looking really closely at the deal. Ultimately I decided to stick with the roaster I have and build my business slowly and with less (no) debt. I am back to the idea of roasting at markets and selling through the local farm market channel. I have a site in the downtown area where I can sell my coffee and plan to set up there on Saturdays for a while and see how things go. Version 2 of my drum is under way, and should improve the consistency and efficiency of my roasts. I am stoked!

 

[devindmoon]

Bardo,

You inspire me. So glad to see that you went ahead and made this work! Would love to hear uupdates. What kind of mods have you done to your BBQ roasting?

I have a custom built 1k machine that's, functionally, near identical to a BBQ roasting setup, but with a bean drop (like commercial roasters have).

How do you track bean temp/roast rprpfiles? Have any heat probes? Can yoservant by color, or just by sound/smell/heat/time

In looking for ways to track roasting profiles, I found the Roastmaster App for $10. It works like a charm and saw a recent update that automatically tracks Roast Profile with an attachment that links certain automatic thermometer heat probe machines to iPad/iphone (and I think other tablets). Wondering if you had experience with this.

Keep inspiring us transient roasters!