In High-Altitude Davao, a 28-Year-Old Processor Bites Her Way to Specialty Coffee Success
Before a testing instrument can confirm whether a batch of coffee beans has the right moisture, Princess Dian M. Tapdasan relies on an older method: her own teeth. In Sitio Pluto, Balutakay, a mountain hamlet in Davao del Sur province, the 28-year-old processor presses a parchment bean between her molars. The crunch tells her the exact moisture content—a technique known locally as the paak method. Tapdasan owns no coffee trees and no farmland. Yet as head coffee processor for the Balutakay Coffee Farmers Agriculture (BACOFA) Cooperative , she holds ultimate authority over the post-harvest operations that shape some of the country’s finest Arabica beans. "I do not chase quantity; I focus on quality," Tapdasan said. "From picking and sorting to processing, quality is what the cooperative stands on." Her meticulous standard has taken her far beyond the slopes of Mount Apo. Tapdasan earned a spot as a finalist representing the Philippines in the Arabica category at th...
