Cocoa Bean Cleaning and Processing Equipment
ADDAMS engineers cocoa bean cleaning, grading and material-handling systems for farms, buying stations, exporters, warehouses and cocoa-processing factories. Cocoa is a specialty industrial crop, not a pulse or legume. Its beans require gentle handling and accurate removal of stones, dust, metal, shell fragments, flat beans and other defects before storage, roasting or further processing.
Related ADDAMS Equipment and Processing Guides
For dried coffee or cocoa bean cleaning and grading, compare Fine Seed Cleaners, Gravity Separator and Optical Color Sorter with the air screen separation process guide, density separation guide and optical sorter separation guide. Specify the bean condition, defect profile and required capacity, and confirm suitability through representative sample trials.
Every line is configured around the condition of the dried beans, incoming contamination, required capacity and the customer’s final specification. ADDAMS can supply a stand-alone cleaner or an integrated system from reception through sorting and packing.
Typical Cocoa Bean Preparation Process
Reception and Controlled Feeding
Dried cocoa beans are received through a hopper and introduced at a stable rate. Controlled feeding prevents surges and improves screening, aspiration and optical sorting. Intake aspiration removes loose dust, fibres and light plant material.
Pre-Cleaning and Screening
An air-screen cleaner removes sticks, pod fragments and oversized contaminants, while lower screens separate sand, broken particles and undersized material. Screen perforations are selected from representative samples to retain useful beans and protect yield.
De-Stoning and Metal Protection
A Pressure De-Stoner separates stones, glass and dense mineral contamination. Magnetic separators and metal detection protect roasting, cracking and grinding equipment downstream.
Density and Defect Separation
A Vigor Series Gravity Separator classifies cocoa beans by specific weight and can remove unusually light, flat, poorly filled or damaged beans. Optical colour sorting rejects mould-affected, discoloured, foreign and visibly defective material.
Gentle Conveying, Storage and Packing
Low-impact elevators and conveyors help limit bean breakage. Clean cocoa can be transferred to buffer bins or silos, weighed into bags or filled into big bags. Centralized dust aspiration and PLC control are available.
Integration with Cocoa Processing
The cleaning line normally prepares cocoa for roasting or downstream treatment. Where required, ADDAMS can integrate feeding, conveying, cracking, screening and air separation around roasting or cocoa-processing equipment. The scope depends on whether the customer requires raw-bean cleaning only or a broader nib-preparation system.
Common Equipment
- Reception hopper and regulated feeder
- Aspiration chamber and dust collection
- Air-screen pre-cleaner and size grader
- Pressure De-Stoner and magnetic separator
- Vigor Series Gravity Separator
- Belt optical colour sorter and inspection conveyor
- Gentle conveying, storage, weighing and packing systems
Designed from Product Samples
Bean size, moisture, shell condition and impurity profile vary by origin and fermentation method. Representative sample tests determine screen openings, airflow, machine settings and the most efficient process sequence.
See the complete ADDAMS coffee and cocoa processing equipment range for integrated project solutions.
Contact ADDAMS with your cocoa bean sample, target capacity and final quality specification for a customized proposal.