Decaffeinated Coffee: Good and Bad Ways

Roasted coffee beans are seen on display at a Juan Valdez store in Bogota, Colombia June 5, 2019. REUTERS/Luisa Gonzalez/File Photo
Roasted coffee beans are seen on display at a Juan Valdez store in Bogota, Colombia June 5, 2019. REUTERS/Luisa Gonzalez/File Photo
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Decaffeinated Coffee: Good and Bad Ways

Roasted coffee beans are seen on display at a Juan Valdez store in Bogota, Colombia June 5, 2019. REUTERS/Luisa Gonzalez/File Photo
Roasted coffee beans are seen on display at a Juan Valdez store in Bogota, Colombia June 5, 2019. REUTERS/Luisa Gonzalez/File Photo

Ever drink decaf and wonder just how your coffee came to be decaffeinated? Experts say it can be tricky for consumers to find out just what method was used to supply them with a slightly calmer cup of joe. And yet one of the three most common ways to remove caffeine is thought to be harmful to the drinker's health, according to the German News Agency (dpa).

A relatively inexpensive approach is to dissolve the caffeine with chemical solvents such as dichloromethane or ethyl acetate. The method with ethyl acetate is considered to be a natural process, as this substance is also found in some fruit and vegetables.

Dichloromethane, on the other hand, is suspected of being carcinogenic. "How much solvent residue may be contained in decaffeinated coffee is determined by an EU directive," says food expert and gastroenterologist Sabine Hülsmann.

When it comes to dichloromethane, this is a maximum of 2 milligrams per kilogram of roasted coffee, according to guidelines in the European Union. These tend to vary in other areas, however. Finally, the carbon dioxide process does not require any solvents.

Here, the beans are flushed with liquid carbon dioxide under high pressure, in a method that binds the gas to caffeine particles to extract them from raw beans, and then, move the caffeine into another separate storage. The process has to be repeated several times.



China Heatwaves Boost Ice Factory Sales

A worker uses tongs to move ice blocks inside a refrigerated store at the Feichao Ice Factory in Hangzhou. Heatwaves across China have caused demand for ice to soar  - AFP
A worker uses tongs to move ice blocks inside a refrigerated store at the Feichao Ice Factory in Hangzhou. Heatwaves across China have caused demand for ice to soar - AFP
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China Heatwaves Boost Ice Factory Sales

A worker uses tongs to move ice blocks inside a refrigerated store at the Feichao Ice Factory in Hangzhou. Heatwaves across China have caused demand for ice to soar  - AFP
A worker uses tongs to move ice blocks inside a refrigerated store at the Feichao Ice Factory in Hangzhou. Heatwaves across China have caused demand for ice to soar - AFP

In a high-ceilinged room on the outskirts of eastern China's Hangzhou, workers use tongs to slide large blocks of frosty white ice along a metal track into a refrigerated truck.

Sales have picked up in recent weeks, boosted by heatwaves sweeping the whole country as summer sets in, the owner of Feichao ice factory, Sun Chao, told AFP.

Globally, heatwaves are becoming more frequent and intense because of climate change, experts say, and China is no exception -- 2024 was the country's hottest on record, and this year is also set to be a scorcher.

Last week, authorities warned of heat-related health risks across large swathes of eastern China, including Zhejiang province where Hangzhou is located.

"In the spring, autumn, and winter, a higher temperature of two to three degrees doesn't have a big impact on our sales," Sun said.

"But in the summer, when temperatures are slightly higher, it has a big impact."

Feichao is a relatively small facility that sells ice to markets, produce transporters, and event organizers.

As the mercury soared past 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in multiple cities across China recently, ice from businesses like Sun's was used to cool down huge outdoor venues.

In neighbouring Jiangsu province, organisers of a football match attended by over 60,000 people placed more than 10,000 large blocks of ice around the stadium, according to the state-owned Global Times.

As AFP watched lorries being loaded with Feichao's ice on Wednesday, an employee from a nearby seafood shop came on foot to purchase two ice blocks -- each selling for around $3.50 -- hauling them off in a large plastic bag.

"In May and June, I can sell around 100 tonnes a day. In July, that number grows, and I can sell around 300 to 400 tonnes," Sun told AFP.

China has endured a string of extreme summers in recent years.

In June, authorities issued heat warnings in Beijing as temperatures in the capital rose to nearly 40 degrees Celsius, while state media said 102 weather stations across the country logged their hottest-ever June day.

The same month, six people were killed and more than 80,000 evacuated due to floods in southern Guizhou province.

China is the world's biggest emitter of the greenhouse gases that scientists generally agree are driving climate change and making extreme weather more intense and frequent.

It is also a global leader in renewable energy, adding capacity at a faster rate than any other country.