Demand for coffee is growing, and climate change threatens supply—yet consumers don’t want to pay more. In an intensified and unequal industry, however, someone always pays.
For paid subscribers: One of Howard Schultz’ final acts as Starbucks CEO was inflicting upon us a line of olive oil-infused coffee drinks. He was so confident the Oleato would change the world. It didn’t.
To meet demand and cut costs, many coffee companies—legally—mix sought-after Kona beans with cheaper coffee from other regions. Now, Hawaii has passed a law mandating that bags labeled as Kona actually contain 51% coffee from the Kona region, upping the percentage from 10%. However the law has proven divisive, with some in the industry worried that it could increase prices and deter customers from buying the more expensive beans.
More influential industry voices are adding to the growing calls to delay implementation of the European Union’s deforestation legislation. Vanusia Nogueira, director of the International Coffee Organization, told a coffee summit in Honduras: “We can’t meet that date; it is not possible.”
Demand for coffee is increasing—whole bean coffee in particular—indicating a growing interest in home brewing. A new report looking at Amazon data shows that demand for whole-bean coffee has increased 46% over the last year.
In case you missed it, here’s my latest deep dive—on Starbucks’ attempts to market itself as a community gathering space (successfully at first, less so in recent years):
I'm a coffee writer and creator of The Pourover. Based in Scotland, I have over a decade of experience in the specialty coffee industry. Ask me about coffeewashing. It's pronounced Fin (he/him)
Fionn Pooler
