American soybeans treated with chemicals are being sold as Vietnamese coffee.

"With just 480kg of soybeans, either American or Cambodian red soybeans, along with some other chemical additives such as coloring agents, flavoring agents, foaming agents, etc., it's possible to produce 500kg of premium coffee."

That's the statement of a man named Nguyen Van Thang (born in 1982, residing in Thu Dau Mot City, Binh Duong province) who has many years of experience in processing and wholesaling coffee to numerous customers in Binh Duong.

Mr. Thang further explained that a complete formula for producing the powder called "coffee" includes: Chocolate flavoring (priced at approximately 280,000 VND/kg), N2 (coffee flavoring), yeast (caramel flavoring), artificial sweeteners, coloring agents, milk powder, whole milk, butter, salt, CMC (foaming agent, used in soap making), and soybeans. To produce a certain number of kilograms of coffee, simply increase the amount of soybeans accordingly.

For example, to produce 500kg of coffee, approximately 480kg of soybeans are needed, with the rest being chemical additives to create color, aroma, richness, fattiness, and bitterness that closely resemble real coffee. When we asked what percentage of it was actually real coffee, the man just smiled and replied, "0%."

Police in Quang Ngai province have busted a fake coffee production facility.

Among those chemicals is CMC – a substance used in soap production, which they use to create foam in coffee and poses the highest risk of cancer. Many customers, unaware of the risks, assume that pure coffee should have a lot of foam, and no one believes that it's chemical foam. Along with CMC are artificial coloring and flavoring agents that are equally toxic. The coloring agent is bright red, has very high adhesion, and takes many days to fade. Thang claims that these chemicals are all discreetly purchased from the Kim Bien chemical market (Ho Chi Minh City).

The formula mentioned above is just one of thousands, even tens of thousands, of formulas for making coffee. Each coffee production facility, whether small-scale or large-scale, maintains its own unique flavor, meaning they use a specific formula that cannot be duplicated or confused with others. This is their secret, and also their livelihood.

According to this man, the production process of "dirty coffee" is divided into three stages. The first stage involves mixing all the roasted beans with the chemicals in the formula. Once the beans and chemicals cool, they clump together into a large mass. The next task for those who "create" this "coffee" is to crush the beans to separate them and then roast them a second time. After roasting, this "coffee" is put into grinders to be ground into fine powder and then packaged for distribution to the market.

Most customers, including those who buy in bulk and then resell to smaller retailers and cafes, are unaware that the coffee they are buying is made from soybeans and chemical additives. Because it is made so skillfully, looking exactly like the real thing, only discerning coffee connoisseurs can detect the difference.

According to Mr. Thang, the distinguishing features between real coffee and "fake coffee" are very subtle; you have to look directly to detect the difference. There are some basic differences such as real coffee beans being very light and porous, turning a light brown color when ground or brewed, and producing little foam when whipped. "Fake coffee," on the other hand, has heavier beans, turns black when ground, and produces a lot of foam when whipped.

According to Vietnam.net