Every Friday, Perfect Daily Grind rounds up the top coffee industry news from the previous week. Here are this week’s stories. 

Mon, 16 May

• Fairtrade International hosts Golden Cup competition in El Salvador. In partnership with the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Fair Trade Small Producers and Workers (CLAC), Pacamara and Bourbon varieties placed first and second in the fifth edition of the competition. The Golden Cup takes place in 15 countries.

• Brazil’s coffee exports drop 24% in April. The number of 60kg bags exported last month fell to 2.8 million – the lowest levels in the country in the past four years. Reasons for the decline include the end of an off-year in the production cycle, increasing domestic use of robusta, and logistical issues related to the invasion of Ukraine and lockdowns in China.

• Bellwether Coffee releases 2021 sustainability report. The roasting solutions company states total roasting carbon emissions reduced by around 2 million pounds (907,180 kg) during 2021, as well reducing carbon footprint per roast cycle by up to 87%. Last year, Bellwether Coffee also signed its first-ever living income coffee contract.

• Hawaii Coffee Association partners with Oritain to certify coffee origin. The partnership will allow the HCA to verify origins of green and roasted coffees to avoid further cases of counterfeiting, particularly with Kona coffee.

• Global ready-to-drink coffee and tea market to be worth over US $167 billion by 2030. According to Grand View Research, online sales of RTD coffee and tea products are expected to increase the most during the analysis period.

• JDE Peet’s to responsibly source 80% of coffee by end of 2022. Through a partnership with Enveritas, JDE Peet’s will responsibly source 100% of its coffee by 2025, which the company states will provide support to more than one million farmers.

Tue, 17 May

• Third World Coffee Producers Forum to take place in hybrid format. The virtual forum will be held on 12 July from 8:00 to 11:00 EST. The in-person event will take place in Kigali, Rwanda from 12 to 13 February 2023.

• PRF Colombia awards 500 scholarships. In partnership with Diamond Sponsor Mayorga Coffee, 500 coffee farmers have received scholarships to attend the event from 30 June to 1 July in Medellín.

• Events coordinator Italian Exhibition Group reports 2022 first quarter revenue of €38 million (US $40 million). The company, which organises festivals such as SIGEP, reported the revenue increase on 2021 was a result of more events being held in-person.

• Brazil’s 2022 coffee production estimated to be 55.7 million 60kg bags. Embrapa Café estimates arabica production will reach 38.7 million 60kgs bags, while robusta production will hit 17 million 60kg bags. Production of robusta in the Amazon is estimated to increase 10% in 2022.

• McDonald’s to permanently end operations in Russia. In March, the fast food chain (which includes McCafé) closed 850 locations in Russia as a result of the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. McDonald’s will sell all of its Russian locations to an unknown local buyer.

• Global freeze-dried coffee market to grow by US $4.13 billion by 2026. The Asia Pacific market is expected to experience the most growth during the analysis period.

• SCA UK announces 2022 Barista Championships and 2022 Brewers Cup winners. Sierra Yeo of Alpro Barista placed first in the Brewers Cup, while Claire Iona from Assembly Coffee is the first-ever female UK Barista Championships winner. The 2022 World Barista Championships and 2022 World Brewers Cup will take place at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo from 27 to 30 September.

• Costa Coffee to open branded kiosks at sporting events. In collaboration with Freemans Event Partners, the coffee chain will launch mobile outlets at major sporting events in the UK, including the Royal Cheshire Show and the Formula One British Grand Prix.

Wed, 18 May

• Alliance for Coffee Excellence announces winners of first-ever Super Mujeres Private Collection Auction. The highest-scoring coffee in the women-focused Nicaraguan competition was a washed coffee from the 5 De Junio farm in Madriz, receiving 87.67 points. The auction will take place on 23 June.

• Indonesia Food Expo 2022 to be held from 9 to 12 June. The 12th annual event will take place in Surabaya, with a virtual expo held from 12 to 16 July. Over 28,200 visitors are expected to attend the event, which will include international coffee brands.

• Indian coffee brand Tata hoping to acquire five more companies. Tata also has a joint venture with Starbucks in India, through which 50 stores opened in the last fiscal year. Tata Group reported 76% annual growth in 2021 for Starbucks stores in India. Tata Starbucks is aiming to open 1,000 locations over an undisclosed time period.

• Voting opens for SCA Sweden chapter elections. Applications for five co-ordinator roles are open until 25 May and the results will be announced on 1 June.

• Arabica futures fall more than 4% after 3-1/2 week-high. July arabica futures dropped from US 229.35 cents/lb to US 217.60 cents/lb after the risk of frost subsided in major coffee-producing regions in Brazil. In most regions, overall temperatures did not drop to levels that could cause damage to coffee trees.

• Italian coffee brand Ditta Artigianale fined €1,000 (US $1,050) over €2 espresso (US $2.10). A customer at the Florence location called the police after claiming that the price was not displayed on the menu. In Italy, the average price for an espresso is €1 (US $1.05).

• Record numbers attend 2022 Glasgow Coffee Festival. More than 2,400 people visited the festival, held from 7 to 8 May – almost double the number of attendees in 2019. More than £10,000 (US $12,413) was raised to support humanitarian projects in Ukraine.

Thu, 19 May

• International Coffee & Tea Expo 2022 held in Singapore. The 9th annual three-day event is running alongside the 9th International Café & Bakery Equipment, Supplies & Technology Exhibition and the 8th International Sweets, Desserts & Bakery Exhibition.

• Volcafe partners with sustainable consulting service dss⁺ to monitor carbon footprint. The partnership will assess carbon emissions across Volcafe’s 25 international offices and will help to implement carbon-neutral operations in its supply chain.

• Brazilian Specialty Coffee Association appoints Vinicius Estrela as new director. Estrela succeeds Vanusia Nogueira, who left the association this month to serve as the first female Executive Director of the International Coffee Organisation. Estrela previously worked at Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) for 15 years.

• Indian brand Savorworks Roasters opens Coffee & Chocolate Atelier experience. The New Delhi roaster’s location includes a coffee bar, serving affogato and and signature coffee drinks. The Live Roastery room allows customers to experience live coffee roasting.

• US roaster Pegasus Coffee Company celebrates 42nd anniversary with coffee shop price rollback. For one day, the Washington roaster rolled back prices across its entire menu to standard coffee prices in the 1980s, including US $1.49 for a latte.

• New AI-powered review platform Blend Coffee App launches in the UK. The app allows users to rate specific coffees from UK roasters, as well as recommending new products to users. Roasters also have access to reviews.

• Malaysian Coffee Championships held at International Café and Beverage Show 2022. The 7th edition of the national coffee championships are taking place at the event, which will run until 21 May in Kuala Lumpur.

• initiative for coffee&climate (c&c) appoints new Chair of Steering Committee. Kathrine Löfberg of Swedish roaster Löfbergs will serve as the new Chair of the organisation. Löfbergs is also a founding member of c&c.

Fri, 20 May

• Tim Hortons joins Canadian reusable cup scheme. The coffee chain will trial the scheme across 20 stores in Vancouver BC for six months. Partners of the Canadian Return-It scheme also include Starbucks, McDonald’s, and A&W.

• The Barista League to host event in Budapest on 21 May. The barista competition will take place at Flow Specialty Coffee Bar & Bistro in Hungary’s capital city. Competitors will use Rancilio espresso machines. The next Barista League event will be held in Portland, Oregon in June.

• Lavazza launches its first-ever carbon-neutral coffee capsules. The Nespresso-compatible aluminium capsules are available in six blends. The rainforest conservation Madre De Dios Conservation Project in Peru is one of main offsetting initiatives supported by the company.

• Slovenian Barista Championships and Cup Tasters held at the Slovenian Coffee Festival 2022. The national competitions are being held in Celje until 22 May.

• Sensory Summit 2022 takes place at UC Davis. The three-day conference includes a number of sensory science-focused seminars and workshops led by academic researchers and specialty coffee professionals.

Here are a few news stories from previous weeks that you might find interesting. Take a look.

• Tue, 10 May – Nespresso partners with zero-waste fashion start-up to create sneakers made from recycled coffee grounds. Each pair of RE:GROUND sneakers contains 12 cups’ worth of used coffee grounds from Nespresso’s capsule recycling scheme.

• Wed, 11 May – Segafredo Zanetti opens new location in Corsica. The Italian coffee company’s new store is located in the city of Bastia on the French island.

• Wed, 11 May – SCA Greece opens nominations for chapter elections. Nominations are open until 18 May and voting will take place between 1 and 8 June.

• Thu, 12 May – De’Longhi reports 8.4% increase in revenue during 2022 first quarter. Total revenue reached US $735.5 million, however, the company stated that conflict in Ukraine slowed growth.

• Thu, 12 May – Scandinavian coffee chain Espresso House announces new CEO. After 18 years with the company, John Nylén will step down as CEO. Current Chief Commercial Officer Anssi Thureson will take over the role.

• Fri, 13 May – Total of 70 Starbucks stores vote to unionise in US. Around 250 stores have filed for union elections. Two locations have so far voted against unionising.

• Sun, 15 May – Saudi Arabia to invest 1.2 billion riyals (US $320 million) to increase domestic coffee production. The 10-year investment, set up by Saudi Coffee Co., aims to boost annual coffee production from 300 tonnes to 2,500 tonnes.

Sign up to our weekly coffee news recap to get a summary of all the biggest stories in the sector, delivered straight to your inbox every Monday.

Want to keep up with current affairs in the coffee industry? Check out last week’s stories.

Photo credits: Julio Guevara