How to Import Green Coffee from Indonesia

Importing green coffee is a sequence of steps, each with its own decisions and its own paperwork. None of it is difficult once you can see the whole path. This guide walks the journey from the first conversation to delivery at your warehouse, and points you to the reference pages behind each stage.

1. Define the requirement

Before you ask for a price, be clear on what you are buying. Five things define a green coffee requirement.

Origin and the profile you want, for example a highland Sumatran arabica or a lowland robusta. The coffee desk origins section sets out what each region offers. Grade, which in Indonesia is set primarily by defect count under the national standard. See Grades for how that scale works. Volume, expressed in bags or containers, since this affects price, freight, and how the lot is built. Processing, which shapes the cup as much as the region does. The difference between wet hulled, washed, natural, and honey is real and worth specifying. And certifications, if your market needs them, such as organic, Fair Trade, or Rainforest Alliance. The Certifications page explains what each one proves, and why a certification is separate from EUDR compliance.

The tighter your requirement, the more useful the offer you get back.

2. Samples

You judge coffee by sampling it, not by description. There are three sample types you will meet.

An offer sample represents coffee currently available and is what you cup to decide whether to buy. A type sample sets an agreed quality standard that the shipment must match or exceed, which is useful when you are contracting ahead of a specific lot. A pre shipment sample is drawn from the actual coffee about to ship, so you can approve it against the contract before it leaves origin.

Assess a sample on both the physical green and the cup. Look at the green for colour, uniformity, and visible defects, and cup it for the flavour profile, body, and any taint. For specialty lots, a cup score gives you a number to hold the lot against. Approve in writing, and keep the approved sample sealed as your reference.

3. Contract and terms

The contract fixes what you have agreed. The points that matter most are these.

The incoterm, which sets where the seller’s responsibility ends and yours begins. Most green coffee moves on FOB or CIF, and our FOB versus CIF guide explains the difference. The price basis, whether a fixed price or a differential to the futures market. The Price Data page tracks the benchmark indicators. Payment, which for us is by confirmed Letter of Credit, meaning a second bank adds its own guarantee to your bank’s undertaking to pay against compliant documents. Quality clauses, which tie the shipment to the approved sample and the agreed analysis. And inspection rights, which reserve your right to an independent pre shipment inspection. Set these out plainly, so there is nothing to interpret later.

4. Documentation

A green coffee shipment travels with a recognised set of documents, and the deal stalls if any are missing or inconsistent. The core set is the commercial invoice, the packing list, the Certificate of Origin, the ICO certificate of origin issued under the International Coffee Organization framework, the phytosanitary certificate from the origin country’s quarantine authority, and the Bill of Lading from the shipping line. A certificate of analysis records the lot’s measured quality. Our How to Read a Certificate of Analysis guide shows you how to check it.

If you are buying into the European Union, the consignment also needs the EUDR Due Diligence Statement reference, which proves the coffee is deforestation-free, legally produced, and traceable to the plot of land where it grew. The EUDR page sets out the requirement and the current application dates. The Logistics page covers the full document set in detail.

5. Freight and logistics

Once the contract is set, the coffee is packed, usually in jute bags with a sealed liner to protect against moisture, loaded into a container, and booked onto a vessel. Under FOB you arrange and pay the ocean freight from the origin port. Under CIF the seller arranges and pays it. Either way the coffee moves by sea from a main Indonesian export port. The Logistics page describes packing, ports, and the export path.

6. Customs clearance and delivery

At the destination port your customs broker clears the coffee using the document set above, paying any import duty and taxes due, and presenting the phytosanitary certificate and, for the EU, the Due Diligence Statement reference. Once cleared, the container moves to your warehouse and the coffee is yours to hold or to roast. Plan for the lag between vessel arrival and cleared delivery, since clearance is rarely instant.

Where inspection fits

At the pre shipment stage you can appoint an independent inspector to sample and check the cargo against the contract before it ships. The recognised names are SGS, Bureau Veritas, and Intertek. An independent inspection gives you third party confirmation that quantity, quality, and packing match what you agreed, and it sits naturally alongside the pre shipment sample. It is worth having on a first contract with any new counterparty.

How IndoCasa handles the origin side

We buy the coffee in Indonesia and sell it to you on FOB or CIF terms against a confirmed Letter of Credit. We build the lot at origin, arrange the analysis and the inspection, and assemble the full document set, including the EUDR support for European buyers. You get a clean line of supply and a complete document pack that matches the cargo. The sourcing network behind the coffee stays with us.

To set up a requirement or ask for an offer, Contact Us. To go deeper on the pieces, see How to Read a Certificate of Analysis and FOB versus CIF.