The TrueCoffee Standard
A gamified trust-seal system based on objective traceability — not subjective tasting notes.
What the seals mean
The TrueCoffee Seal
Required: Country, Region, Farm/Producer, Process, Variety, Harvest Year
Farm/Producer guarantees it's not a white-labeled blend. Harvest Year guarantees the green coffee isn't old stock.
The TrueCoffee Gold Seal
All TrueCoffee requirements + SCA Score
While SCA scores are often self-evaluated by roasters (and therefore subjective/inflated), providing it adds an extra layer of data for hardcore coffee geeks.
No Seal (Listing Only)
If a coffee is missing any required field — especially Farm or Harvest Year — it does NOT get a seal. It remains listed in the database, but lacks the trust badge.
Seal Requirements at a Glance
| Country |
TRUECOFFEE
|
GOLD
|
|---|---|---|
| Country | ||
| Region | ||
| Farm / Producer | ||
| Process | ||
| Variety | ||
| Harvest Year | ||
| SCA Score (Bonus) | Bonus |
Why Farm & Harvest Year are non-negotiable
A coffee without a named farm could be a white-labeled blend — commodity beans rebranded under a fancy label. A coffee without a harvest year could be years-old green stock sold as fresh. These two fields are the minimum for any honest transparency claim.
The Harvest Year Problem
Coffee is an agricultural product. Like any crop, it has a season. Green coffee degrades over time: flavors fade, oils oxidize, and complexity diminishes. A roaster who doesn't disclose the harvest year may be hiding stale stock — or simply doesn't know, which is arguably worse.
Why SCA is a bonus, not a requirement
SCA scores are useful, but they have inherent limitations. Most scores published by roasters are self-evaluated, not third-party Q-Grader scores. Two different graders can score the same coffee 3-4 points apart. The TrueCoffee Standard treats SCA as valuable bonus data — great to have, but not required for trust.
Are you a roaster?
Claim your profile or submit your coffees to our audit. Transparency builds trust with informed buyers.
Submit Your Coffees