Poor Farmer

By Leslie Josephs The Wall Street Journal March 18, 2012 Coffee roasters are battling for both market share and raw materials as supplies of coveted handpicked beans dwindle. The industry will be abuzz over this and other issues facing the changing marketplace at the National Coffee Association's annual conference this week. Starting Thursday, executives from roasters such as  Starbucks  Corp.,  SBUX +0.26% Maxwell House-maker  Kraft Foods  Inc.,  KFT +0.21%  and  J.M. Smucker  Co., SJM +0.41%  which produces Folgers, will join growers groups, commodity trade houses and banks at the Charleston, S.C., meeting. Another topic of discussion around the table will be the explosive growth of single-cup brewing machines. Starbucks is at the center of the single-serve frenzy. It currently sells its coffee in K-Cup pods that work with the Keurig machine. The machines, made by  Green Mountain Coffee oasters ...

Reuters March 17, 2012 (BOGOTA) - Colombia's coffee growers' federation on Saturday urged the central bank to stop interest rate increases that are spurring currency appreciation and reducing   earnings   of coffee exporters as they struggle with slumping production. "Colombian (coffee) exporters have been hard hit by the appreciation of our currency and the weakening of the dollar," said Luis Genaro Munoz, head of the coffee federation, during an event in the province of Huila, which recently overtook Antioquia to become Colombia's top coffee-producing region. "We are sure that government representatives in the central bank received the instructions to revise the effectiveness" of raising rates, he added during the inauguration of a mill with capacity to process 400,000 60-kg bags. The Colombian peso has appreciated 9.35 percent so far this year and 6.7 percent in the last 12 months driven partly by the strong foreign direct inves...

By Sandy Shore The Associated Press March 16, 2012 Coffee prices fell Friday on expectations that Brazilian growers will produce a bountiful harvest later this year. Coffee for May delivery fell 2.95 cents to finish at $1.8235 per pound. The price has fallen 19.3 percent this year on the prospect that global inventories could expand. Brazil's crop appears to be in good condition, prompting many traders to speculate that growers will have a good harvest in about three months. That could ease concerns about reports of lower coffee production in Colombia, analysts said. Sterling Smith, a market analyst at Country Hedging LLC, thinks that the price could fall into a range between $1.65 per pound to $1.70 per pound, but noted that could be offset by strong overall demand. Despite the falling futures prices, consumers aren't likely to get a break at the retail level because manufacturers are paying higher costs to produce and ship their products, he said. ...

By Jean Guerrero The Wall Street Journal March 15, 2012 NARANJO, Costa Rica—Coffee producers in the heart of this region that grows top-notch beans learned a tough lesson in 2001, the last time prices sank: Even gourmet coffee can leave a bitter taste. This time, they are better prepared. Prices of arabica beans, the kind coveted by connoisseurs for their mild taste, have hit 17-month lows. Rather than spending their profits on luxuries like new cars and the latest electronic toys, as many once did, growers from Costa Rica to Mexico to Colombia are diversifying to protect themselves from cyclical declines like this one. The efforts of some Latin American farmers to lessen their reliance on coffee has pinched supplies of high-end arabica, which undergoes a rigorous and labor-intensive washing process, even as global demand has increased. Consumers in emerging markets are thronging coffee shops in increasing numbers. Without a sustained increase in output from Latin A...

By Lucia Kassai Bloomberg News March 13, 2012 Diogo Ribeiro da Luz, visiting a missionary friend in the heart of the Amazon three years ago, stepped into a banana-leaf tent to be greeted by a tribesman covered in red body paint asking if he wanted a cup of coffee. The surprise offer from the remote rainforest tribe, where the drink was never traditionally consumed, reflects rising demand across the country, said Luz, who runs Sao Paulo-based coffee roaster Cafes Bom Retiro Ltda. Brazil may overtake the U.S. as the world’s largest consumer of the bean in two to three years, according to Marcos Pinta Gama, Brazil’s permanent representative to international organizations in London. Accelerating economic growth has made espressos and premium-blend coffee drinks from companies such as Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) more affordable to the country’s expanding middle class. The number of coffee shops in Sao Paulo, the country’s largest city, doubled in 15 years to 25,000, Luz said,...

Michelle Locke The Associated Press via The Globe and Mail March 08, 2012   Hugh Jackman attends the afterparty for the Toronto  premiere of Real Steel. Photo: JJ Thompson Courtesy of The Globe and Mail You know you like your cup of joe in the morning. But are you ready for a cup of Hugh? We are, of course, talking about actor Hugh Jackman, who recently launched a coffee and tea company that raises money for charity. Philanthropy is the driving force behind his invsolvement in the coffee world. In a telephone interview, Mr. Jackman talked about being inspired by the late Paul Newman and his company, Newman's Own, which has donated millions to charity. But it's not the only reason. The other factor? Taste. “Hey, I'm a coffee snob,” says Mr. Jackman, who could drink coffee “all day, because I just love it,” but limits himself to one or two cups. “If I'm buying it, I want a great cup of coffee. If you can have a great cup of coffee a...

By Tjibbe Hoekstra Reuters March 7, 2012 (Reuters) - Starbucks Corp, the world's biggest coffee chain, is hoping to boost growth in Europe, the Middle East and Africa by opening so-called concept stores that tailor products and cafe interiors to local tastes, a senior manager told Reuters. Starbucks will open between five and 10 such stores in the region this year, Rich Nelsen, senior vice president for Starbucks' Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) business, said in an interview. Those cafes will test new products, such as fresh-baked pastries, as well as exclusive coffees from small-scale farms, "If these new products and the other concepts we test here work, we will expand these to other countries," he said. On Friday, Starbucks will open its first European concept store in Amsterdam, followed by one in Kuwait later this year. Concept stores test new Starbucks products and sales ideas while their design and interior are inspi...