Coffee for health

Inside these ripening Rubiaceae cherries are coffee beans... and they're bursting with antioxidants.

By following the science and harnessing nature, we've crafted the healthiest possible coffee for both you and the planet.

Our lab results & certifications

Our Process

Believe it or not, coffee beans aren't beans at all, they're actually the seeds of a fruit which grows on a tree!

Through poor processing and over roasting coffee can lose most of it's natural, fruity goodness. But worse still, most acquire potentially harmful contaminants like mycotoxins and pesticides (1).

Exhale coffee looks and tastes like any other. But our unique process involving 9 different, independent lab tests locks in more of coffee's healthiest compounds while keeping out the bad. All done in the most sustainable way, without sacrificing on taste.

Our 3 pillars of health, sustainability and taste are equally prioritised through every stage of our process.

HEALTH

SUSTAINABILITY

TASTE

1. Setting the bar

Lab Tests - Round 1 - Competitors

We tested the top ten roast & ground coffees in 2019 for total polyphenols at independent labs to set the bar for what we have to beat.

2. Sourcing

Organically Farmed

Every part of our supply chain, from farm to roastery, is organic certified and we're Soil Association Organic ourselves. Organic farming is better for both you and the planet.

Speciality Coffee

We choose only the highest quality, speciality grade coffee scoring over 80/100 by the SCA - Speciality Coffee Association. They're scored on taste so this sets a minimum acceptable standard of taste.

Ethically Sourced

Only single origin coffees, fully traceable to farms were considered. To be imported via only the most sustainable importers who work in collaboration with the farmers.

Chemical-free decaf

Most decaffeination processes use nasty chemicals. This leaves chemical residues in the beans and leeches out the healthy compounds. We source only beans processed chemical-free.

3. Selection

Taste Test

We initially taste tested 45 coffees from around the globe that met our strict criteria, from the UK's top 7 importers. We now are continually testing coffees looking for the next best thing.

Lab Tests - Round 2

Our favourite tasting coffees are independently tested for polyphenols. Only the select few coffees with high enough levels of polyphenols are sent to the next round for roast profiling..

4. Purchasing

Fair Price

We have committed to always pay above Fair Trade price for our coffee. Our current coffee is Fair Trade certified, but all Speciality Grade coffee pays 'beyond Fair Trade' prices of up to 5x or 10x the Fair Trade price.

Storage

We choose coffee that is stored and transported in hermetically sealed Grain Pro bags. These keep coffee fresh but also reduce the chance of any contaminants such as mould growth and so mycotoxins.

5. Roast Profiling

Medium Roasted

We never roast more than a medium (or dark-ish) roast to optimise for polyphenols, melanoidins, cafestol and kahweol. Dark roasting can lose 90% of these healthy compounds.

Taste Test

We roast the winning coffee lots of ways to find the best way of roasting to lock in the healthy compounds. But it has to taste delicious and we fail any that don't pass our taste test!

Lab Tests - round 3

We sent the best tasting roast profiles to be lab tested for polyphenols to find the healthiest roast profile of the healthiest coffee. We test for total polyphenols or chlorogenic acid. 

6. Verification

Lab Tests - The Bad Stuff

We tested our coffee beans to confirm they are free from mycotoxins, pesticides, moulds, yeasts & heavy metals. Our coffee had to be as clean and pure as it is delicious. 

Lab Tests - Antioxidants

We tested a brewed cup of our coffee to verify it's antioxidant power. It's potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects are the main mechanisms making coffee so healthy.

Lab Tests - Vitamins

We tested our brewed coffee for Niacin (vitamin B3) proving it naturally provides 20% of your RDA in 2 cups, so is one of your diets richest sources!

Taste Test

More taste testing to dial in the recommended brew methods and ensure the chosen roast profile works in everything from a cafetiere to an AeroPress, both without and with milk!

7. Shipping

Packaging

We searched tirelessly to find plastic free, certified compostable pouches from plant-based, renewable sources. And all paper and cardboard used is from FSC certified renewable forests using eco-friendly inks.

Fresh for Potency

Coffee stales quickly and it's healthy compounds begin to degrade soon after roasting. Our coffee is roasted fresh weekly and posted that week, maximising the antioxidants that end up in your cup.

Fresh for Taste

All our coffee is roasted in small batches in Brixton, and then posted fresh so all it's wonderful flavour is maintained. Coffee tastes it's best for 6 weeks after roasting so that's when we want you to drink it!

An F&B revolution

We believe food is medicine

We're a chronically sick society. 40% of adults have at least one long-term health condition.

Food has the power to both prevent and heal. So if food is medicine, imagine the potential if all the food we consume was treated with the same love and care we treat our coffee?

We share the blueprint of our process above in the hope that it inspires other businesses to join our mission and to produce food in a more naturally healthy way.

Shop our healthy coffees
OUR RESULTS

Our independent lab tests

For your health

Our process involved 9 different tests at independent laboratories across Europe to find a coffee with more of the good stuff and less of the bad.

We're constantly testing coffees from across the globe looking for the next best thing.

Here's what we test for, along with certificates. There are too many to upload and refresh them all so if you want a certificate for a specific coffee please email hey@exhalecoffee.com and Laura will be happy to help.

You can learn more about what all this means for your health over on our Science page.

The science on coffee

Our sustainability certificates

For the planet's health

We believe waste is a dirty word so tirelessly searched to find our plastic free, compostable packaging. And we're pretty proud of it!

We want to do things in the right way. Ethical sourcing, organic farming practices and the highest levels of sustainability are all minimum requirements in our supply chain.

We're not perfect, but we're genuinely trying the best we can.

Here are a few of the certificates we've acquired along the way, but you can learn more on our Sustainability Page.

Sustainability commitments

Our non-negotiables

For sensational taste

Can you imagine a life without delicious coffee? We can't. So we're on a mission to prove you don't have to sacrifice taste when making healthier choices.

We source speciality grade beans then comparative taste test at every stage to guarantee an incredible tasting cup of coffee - both with and without milk!

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