diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 67d37947..933de9df 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -99,7 +99,7 @@ test-debug:		## runs test cases with debugging info enabled
 
 test-cov:		## checks test coverage requirements
 	$(PYTHON3) -m pytest -n auto --cov-config=.coveragerc --cov=$(SRC_DIR) \
-		$(TEST_DIR) --cov-fail-under=45 --cov-report term-missing
+		$(TEST_DIR) --cov-fail-under=80 --cov-report term-missing
 
 lint:			## runs the linter against the project
 	pylint --rcfile=.pylintrc $(SRC_DIR) $(TEST_DIR)
diff --git a/conda_recipe_manager/commands/convert.py b/conda_recipe_manager/commands/convert.py
index f4fc2148..6564f2bd 100644
--- a/conda_recipe_manager/commands/convert.py
+++ b/conda_recipe_manager/commands/convert.py
@@ -100,13 +100,14 @@ def _record_unrecoverable_failure(
     return conversion_result
 
 
-def convert_file(file_path: Path, output: Optional[Path], print_output: bool) -> ConversionResult:
+def convert_file(file_path: Path, output: Optional[Path], print_output: bool, debug: bool) -> ConversionResult:
     """
     Converts a single recipe file to the new format, tracking results.
     :param file_path: Path to the recipe file to convert
     :param output: If specified, the file contents are written to this file path. Otherwise, the file is dumped to
         STDOUT IF `print_output` is set to `True`.
     :param print_output: Prints the recipe to STDOUT/STDERR if the output file is not specified and this flag is `True`.
+    :param debug: Enables debug mode output. Prints to STDERR.
     :returns: A struct containing the results of the conversion process, including debugging metadata.
     """
     conversion_result = ConversionResult(
@@ -146,9 +147,16 @@ def convert_file(file_path: Path, output: Optional[Path], print_output: bool) ->
             e,
         )
 
+    # Print the initial parser, if requested
+    print_err("########## PARSED RECIPE FILE ##########", print_enabled=debug)
+    print_err(parser, print_enabled=debug)
+
     # Convert the recipe
     try:
-        conversion_result.content, conversion_result.msg_tbl = parser.render_to_new_recipe_format()
+        conversion_result.content, conversion_result.msg_tbl, debug_new_parser = parser.render_to_new_recipe_format()
+        # Print the new parser, if requested
+        print_err("########## CONVERTED RECIPE FILE ##########", print_enabled=debug)
+        print_err(debug_new_parser, print_enabled=debug)
     except Exception as e:  # pylint: disable=broad-exception-caught
         return _record_unrecoverable_failure(
             conversion_result,
@@ -172,16 +180,17 @@ def convert_file(file_path: Path, output: Optional[Path], print_output: bool) ->
     return conversion_result
 
 
-def process_recipe(file: Path, path: Path, output: Optional[Path]) -> tuple[str, ConversionResult]:
+def process_recipe(file: Path, path: Path, output: Optional[Path], debug: bool) -> tuple[str, ConversionResult]:
     """
     Helper function that performs the conversion operation for parallelizable execution.
     :param file: Recipe file to convert
     :param path: Path argument provided by the user
     :param output: Output argument file provided by the user
+    :param debug: Enables debug mode output. Prints to STDERR.
     :returns: Tuple containing the key/value pairing that tracks the result of the conversion operation
     """
     out_file: Optional[Path] = None if output is None else file.parent / output
-    conversion_result = convert_file(file, out_file, False)
+    conversion_result = convert_file(file, out_file, False, debug)
     conversion_result.project_name = file.relative_to(path).parts[0]
     return str(file.relative_to(path)), conversion_result
 
@@ -251,8 +260,14 @@ def _collect_issue_stats(project_name: str, issues: list[str], hist: dict[str, i
     is_flag=True,
     help="Truncates logging. On large tests in a GitHub CI environment, this can eliminate log buffering issues.",
 )
+@click.option(
+    "--debug",
+    "-d",
+    is_flag=True,
+    help="Debug mode, prints debugging information to STDERR.",
+)
 def convert(
-    path: Path, output: Optional[Path], min_success_rate: float, truncate: bool
+    path: Path, output: Optional[Path], min_success_rate: float, truncate: bool, debug: bool
 ) -> None:  # pylint: disable=redefined-outer-name
     """
     Recipe conversion CLI utility. By default, recipes print to STDOUT. Messages always print to STDERR. Takes 1 file or
@@ -265,7 +280,7 @@ def convert(
 
     ## Single-file case ##
     if len(files) == 1:
-        result: Final[ConversionResult] = convert_file(files[0], output, True)
+        result: Final[ConversionResult] = convert_file(files[0], output, True, debug)
         print_messages(MessageCategory.WARNING, result.msg_tbl)
         print_messages(MessageCategory.ERROR, result.msg_tbl)
         print_err(result.msg_tbl.get_totals_message())
@@ -276,7 +291,9 @@ def convert(
     # Process recipes in parallel
     thread_pool_size: Final[int] = mp.cpu_count()
     with mp.Pool(thread_pool_size) as pool:
-        results = dict(pool.starmap(process_recipe, [(file, path, output) for file in files]))  # type: ignore[misc]
+        results = dict(
+            pool.starmap(process_recipe, [(file, path, output, debug) for file in files])  # type: ignore[misc]
+        )
 
     # Tracking failures from bulk operation
     recipes_with_except: list[str] = []
diff --git a/conda_recipe_manager/parser/recipe_parser_convert.py b/conda_recipe_manager/parser/recipe_parser_convert.py
index 11c157b2..41c99326 100644
--- a/conda_recipe_manager/parser/recipe_parser_convert.py
+++ b/conda_recipe_manager/parser/recipe_parser_convert.py
@@ -437,7 +437,7 @@ def pre_process_recipe_text(content: str) -> str:
 
         return content
 
-    def render_to_new_recipe_format(self) -> tuple[str, MessageTable]:
+    def render_to_new_recipe_format(self) -> tuple[str, MessageTable, RecipeParser]:
         """
         Takes the current recipe representation and renders it to the new format WITHOUT modifying the current recipe
         state.
@@ -447,6 +447,10 @@ def render_to_new_recipe_format(self) -> tuple[str, MessageTable]:
           - https://github.com/conda-incubator/ceps/blob/main/cep-14.md
 
         (As of writing there is no official name other than "the new recipe format")
+        :returns: Returns a tuple containing:
+            - The converted recipe, as a string
+            - A `MessageTbl` instance that contains error logging
+            - The `RecipeParser` instance containing the converted recipe file. USE FOR DEBUGGING PURPOSES ONLY!
         """
         # Approach: In the event that we want to expand support later, this function should be implemented in terms
         # of a `RecipeParser` tree. This will make it easier to build an upgrade-path, if we so choose to pursue one.
@@ -496,4 +500,4 @@ def render_to_new_recipe_format(self) -> tuple[str, MessageTable]:
         # "sensible" to a human reader.
         self._sort_subtree_keys("/", TOP_LEVEL_KEY_SORT_ORDER)
 
-        return self._new_recipe.render(), self._msg_tbl
+        return self._new_recipe.render(), self._msg_tbl, self._new_recipe
diff --git a/tests/parser/test_recipe_parser_convert.py b/tests/parser/test_recipe_parser_convert.py
index 175c1159..b1f7d30c 100644
--- a/tests/parser/test_recipe_parser_convert.py
+++ b/tests/parser/test_recipe_parser_convert.py
@@ -120,7 +120,7 @@ def test_render_to_new_recipe_format(file_base: str, errors: list[str], warnings
     :param file_base: Base file name for both the input and the expected out
     """
     parser = load_recipe_convert(file_base)
-    result, tbl = parser.render_to_new_recipe_format()
+    result, tbl, _ = parser.render_to_new_recipe_format()
     assert result == load_file(f"{TEST_FILES_PATH}/new_format_{file_base}")
     assert tbl.get_messages(MessageCategory.ERROR) == errors
     assert tbl.get_messages(MessageCategory.WARNING) == warnings