Two bad harvests and the coffee market is being reshaped

Financial Times writes about an interesting shift among consumers with the rising price of coffee. According to the Italian Lavazza, the higher coffee price is pushing customers away from portioned capsules towards bean coffee and home bean‑to‑cup machines.

Nielsen data for the year up to May confirm this – United Kingdom: bean coffee sales volume +20.3 %, value +36.8 % (the overall domestic market grew only 2.8 %). Bean‑to‑cup machine sales +33.5 %, France +35 %, Italy +33 %, Germany +31.2 % (by value). In Germany, bean coffee has already overtaken traditional ground coffee.

One of the reasons for rising coffee prices is a weak harvest due to bad weather, frost, the El Niño effect, or unexpected rains in Brazil. Volatility is becoming the new normal, and according to Lavazza, at least two strong harvests in Brazil and Vietnam would be needed to replenish supplies.

The company is also preparing for September in the United Kingdom the Tablì system: a pressed coffee tablet without a plastic or aluminum wrapper, as a response to the waste problem of traditional capsules.

The shift from capsules to bean coffee (in the UK +20 % by volume, in Germany bean coffee has already outpaced ground coffee) is not just about taste, but can also be a silent response to waste from aluminum and plastic capsules.

Source: https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/2f271b1c-3c63-4520-bfc3-523c52bbb200