For buyers
Robusta parchment from Nandipura: what a buyer should know
10 October 2026 · 3 min read
Robusta parchment is the line Nandipura is best known for outside India. It is the lot that holds a Certificate of Merit, and it is the one already shipping to Europe. This page sets out what is known about it, and what a buyer should ask the estate directly.
Key takeaways
- Washed Robusta, pulped the same day it is picked and sun-dried on the estate in Mudigere, Chikmagalur, at 3,400 feet.
- Grown under thirty to forty indigenous shade trees an acre, from blocks between two and forty years old, S.274 among them.
- Rainforest Alliance (SAS 2020 v1.2) and AtSource+ certified, and awarded a Certificate of Merit for Robusta Parchment Bulk.
Where is it grown?
On two family estates, Nandipura and Indravally, in Mudigere taluk. The estates were entirely Arabica until the 1980s, when the family planted Robusta after two low Arabica years. It was one of the first Robusta plantings in the area. Some blocks were planted two years ago; the oldest are thirty-five to forty years old. One block is selection 274.
The shade is not silver oak, the usual tree on estates here. It is indigenous forest left standing from the old plantings: jackfruit, ficus, fig and Malabar plum, thirty to forty trees an acre. Since 1996 the estate has built eight ponds to irrigate the Robusta, after the crop of 1991-92 came in as one of the lowest it had picked.
What another planter saw walking these blocks covers the planting, the shade and the irrigation in more detail.
How is it processed?
- Picked. Pickers go through each block several times in a season, taking ripe cherry, rather than stripping it once.
- Pulped the same day. Nothing waits overnight. The pulping line is built for twenty-five tonnes of cherry a day.
- Washed gently. Slowly and without force, to a clean bean.
- Sun-dried on the estate. Turned by hand and brought down at the pace the weather allows.
- Graded. Each batch is checked by eye and by cup before it carries the estate's name.
Lots stay tied to the ground they came from, so a buyer can trace a consignment back to the estate.
What is it certified for?
| Credential | What it is |
|---|---|
| Rainforest Alliance | Sustainable Agriculture Standard 2020, version 1.2 |
| AtSource+ | Verified sustainability programme |
| Group certificate | Under Olam Food Ingredients India, Coffee Planters Association |
| Certificate of Merit | Awarded for Robusta Parchment Bulk |
| K.P.A. | Member estate, Karnataka Planters' Association |
The estate's coffee has also been cupped blind by independent tasters. What that blind cupping said, faults included, is written up separately. It was an earlier crop and says nothing about this one.
What should a buyer ask before ordering?
This site does not yet publish order minimums, packing, the port of shipment, incoterms, sample terms or the harvest window. The estate answers those directly, and the answers depend on the crop.
An enquiry that names the volume, the timing and the destination port will get a useful reply faster than a general one. Send it through the enquiry form, by WhatsApp on +91 81052 59005, or to nandipura@hotmail.com.
Questions
- What is Robusta parchment?
- Robusta coffee that has been pulped, washed and dried with the thin parchment layer still around the bean. At Nandipura & Indravally Estates in Mudigere, Chikmagalur, the cherry is pulped the day it is picked, washed gently and sun-dried on the estate before it is sold as parchment.
- Is Nandipura's Robusta parchment certified?
- Yes. The estate is certified to the Rainforest Alliance Sustainable Agriculture Standard 2020, version 1.2, and verified under AtSource+, through a group certification under Olam Food Ingredients India. It also holds a Certificate of Merit awarded for Robusta Parchment Bulk.
- Does Nandipura export Robusta parchment?
- Its Robusta parchment already goes to buyers in Europe. Order minimums, packing, port and terms are agreed directly with the estate, so the quickest route is an enquiry stating the volume and timing you need.