Coffee prices are climbing due to extreme weather and poor harvests, with major chains warning of further increases in the near future
London: Coffee prices are really on the rise, and it’s not looking good. Extreme weather and bad harvests have pushed wholesale prices for coffee beans to a 50-year high. Can you believe that?
Big names like Pret a Manger have hiked the price of a cappuccino by about 50% since 2019, now costing over £4. And guess what? More price hikes are coming. Supermarkets are also warning us about rising prices and smaller packages, a sneaky move they call “shrinkflation.”
The price of arabica beans, which is the most popular type, just hit a near 50-year high, jumping more than 18% this year. Even robusta beans, usually cheaper, are seeing record price increases. It’s wild!
Weather issues in major coffee-growing countries like Vietnam and Brazil are causing all this chaos. Experts are worried that climate change could push cappuccino prices at major chains to over £5 in just a couple of years. In Vietnam, the key coffee-growing area faced dryness during the growing season, followed by heavy rains right at harvest time.
Back in 2019, a cappuccino at Pret was just £2.45. Now, if you don’t have their £5 monthly subscription, you’re paying £4.05. That’s a whopping 65% increase! An americano there is now £3.60, up more than 50% in five years, although they did drop the price of filter coffee to 99p recently.
Research from Stocklytics shows that the average price of coffee drinks has jumped by 51% since 2019. A large cappuccino at Greggs is now £3, while a large americano is £2.50. Back in 2019, those prices were £2.20 and £1.90. Wetherspoons still has the cheapest cappuccino on the high street at £1.56, though.
Even making coffee at home is getting pricier. Nescafe Original Instant Coffee has gone up 15% year on year in supermarkets. Last month, Nestle, which owns Nespresso, said they’d keep raising prices and making packs smaller to deal with the higher bean costs. They mentioned they’re trying to be more efficient and absorb costs where they can.
This summer, Lavazza, the Italian coffee company, warned that coffee prices would stay “very high” and probably won’t drop until mid-2025 due to supply chain pressures. Giuseppe Lavazza, the company chair, said they’ve never seen such a price spike before. The coffee supply chain is really under stress.
Did you know coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world after crude oil? The current price surge is linked to worries about the 2025 crop in Brazil, the biggest coffee producer. Ole Hansen from Saxo Bank reported that Brazil has faced the worst drought in 70 years, followed by heavy rain, raising fears of a crop failure in 2025. David Oxley from Capital Economics said prices will only drop when supply improves and stocks are replenished, which could take years.