A green coffee offer sheet is the spreadsheet importers send roasters listing what is available to buy — and learning to read one well is one of the fastest ways to source better coffee for less money. ICT Coffee is a Q Grader-certified specialty green coffee importer in San Diego, sending roasters across the United States and Canada clear, current offer lists. This guide breaks down every column on a green coffee offer sheet, what the numbers actually mean, and how to compare offers before you commit a single dollar.
What an Offer Sheet Is For
An offer sheet is a snapshot of an importer’s current inventory and incoming coffee, with the details you need to make a buying decision in one place. Read it well and you can spot value, compare lots fairly, and avoid overpaying for a name. Read it poorly and you are buying on guesswork. The same skills apply whether you are scanning a PDF list or our own live green coffee inventory online.
The Columns, Decoded
Most offer sheets share a common set of columns. Here is what each one tells you:
- Origin, region, and lot — the country, growing region, and specific farm or cooperative. More specificity usually means more traceability.
- Varietal and process — the coffee variety and how it was processed (washed, natural, honey, wet-hulled), which together preview the flavor.
- Grade and screen size — the quality grade and bean size, such as SHB or Grade 1 and screen 15/16.
- Score — the cupping score, typically on the 100-point specialty scale.
- Packaging and moisture — GrainPro, jute, or vacuum, plus moisture percentage.
- Location, availability, and price — which warehouse holds it, whether it is in stock, and the price per pound.
If grade and screen-size terms are unfamiliar, our green coffee grading guide explains how they map to what is in the bag.
Cupping Scores: What 84 vs. 87 Means
The score column is where a lot of buying decisions are won or lost. Under the Specialty Coffee Association cupping scale, coffee scoring 80 points or above qualifies as specialty, with higher scores reflecting greater clarity, complexity, and absence of defects. The credential behind that number matters too — a score from a Coffee Quality Institute Q Grader carries more weight than an unattributed one.
In practice, an 84 is a solid, clean daily coffee, while an 87 is a distinctive standout you can feature. Both have a place; the question is whether the price gap between them matches the cup quality gap. ICT’s Q Graders score every lot we ship, so the number on the sheet is one you can trust.
Availability Terms: Spot, Afloat, and Forward
The availability column uses trade shorthand worth knowing. Spot means the coffee is already in a warehouse, landed and ready to ship now. Afloat means it is on the water, en route to port. Forward means it is contracted for future delivery, often before it has even shipped. Spot coffee is fastest and lowest-risk; forward buying locks in a specific lot and price ahead of arrival, which matters for coffees you cannot afford to miss.
Reading the Price Column
Price per pound is rarely just a number — it reflects how the coffee is priced. Some lots are sold at a fixed price; others are priced as a differential over or under the C-market, the global commodity benchmark. Landed warehouse pricing already includes import and logistics costs, while FOB pricing does not. When you compare two offers, make sure you are comparing the same basis, or the cheaper-looking lot may not actually be cheaper. Our logistics overview explains what goes into getting coffee from origin to your door.
Certifications and Traceability
Many sheets include columns for certifications — organic, Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance — and traceability notes naming the producer or cooperative. These matter if you market your sourcing to customers, and they can affect price. Verifiable traceability is also a quality signal in its own right: a sheet that names the farm, altitude, and producer is usually backed by a more careful supply chain than one listing only a country. For standout single-farm coffees, our microlot program carries the deepest traceability.
How to Compare Offers and Buy
Put two or three candidate lots side by side and weigh score against price, process against your menu, and availability against your timeline. Then taste before you commit — the sheet narrows the field, but the cup makes the decision. Request up to four free samples of the lots that look strongest and roast them yourself. For more on vetting a supplier, see what questions to ask green coffee suppliers and our guide to building a wholesale green coffee program.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a green coffee offer sheet?
It is the list an importer sends roasters showing available coffees and their details — origin, process, grade, cupping score, packaging, availability, and price — so you can compare lots and decide what to buy.
What cupping score should I look for?
On the specialty scale, 80 and above is specialty grade. Scores in the mid-80s are solid daily coffees; 87 and up are distinctive lots worth featuring. Weigh the score against the price difference and confirm who scored it.
What does “spot” mean on an offer sheet?
Spot coffee is already landed in a warehouse and ready to ship immediately, as opposed to afloat (on the water) or forward (contracted for future delivery). Spot is the fastest, lowest-risk option.
How do I start buying from an offer sheet?
Shortlist a few lots that fit your menu and budget, request samples, cup them on your roaster, then order the winner in a volume you can roast fresh and set a reorder cadence with your importer.
Ready to Get Started?
Turn a confusing spreadsheet into confident buying with a current, transparent offer list and Q Grader-verified scores.
Request up to 4 free samples or call us at (619) 338-8335.