Milling involves both hulling and grading. The hulling removes any outer fibres left on the beans before grading takes place, principally by hand.

Dry milling begins in December. There are 4 dry milling machines for RECOCARNO member cooperatives: one at COSAHEC, one at CAFUMO, and two at the CACGAVA mill, which serves all the other cooperatives. For KPKP, KOPVOCH, KAPB and KAPBM, the parchment has to be transported down to Cap-Haïtien, and back up into the mountains to the CACGAVA in Dondon. At CACGAVA, there is a permanent diesel-powered milling machine and a mobile electric one owned by RECOCARNO. Processing units have been replaced recently at CAFUMO (Mont-Organisé) and COSAHEC (Carice). All equipment will continue to operate until the new central processing facility is established.

Click here to see a schematic map of these routes and locations.

When the centralised mill is established at Plaine du Nord, near Cap Haïtien, this will process the coffee from cooperatives in Puilboreau, Champagne and Petit Bourg de Borgne.

Because the existing dry mills are situated in the same compounds as washing stations, milling can only begin once all the coffee has been dried, because of a lack of storage, bulking and hand-picking space. A centralised mill could mean dry processing could begin in October or November and coffee could be available for export in November and December.

The next stage of processing is grading of the hulled "green coffee".