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

Mon, 24 Apr

• Uganda reports 2% year-on-year increase in coffee exports in March. The Uganda Coffee Development Authority says the country shipped 487,797 60kg bags of coffee in March 2023. The increase in exports was largely attributed to exporters shipping reserve warehouse stocks to capitalise on higher robusta prices.

• SCA announces winners of 2023 Best New Product Awards and Coffee Design Awards. This year’s winners were announced at the Specialty Coffee Expo in Portland, Oregon, which attracted more than 12,000 visitors:
  • Best New Product Awards:
    • Coffee Accessories: Ion Beam by Acaia
    • Commercial Coffee Preparation and Serving Equipment: Latte Art Factory Bar Pro by Frank Buna, which has won three Best New Product Awards in less than a year – making it the first-ever product to do so
    • Consumer Coffee Preparation and Serving Equipment: The Barista Touch Impress by Breville
    • Open Class: Redefined by Rarebird, Inc.
    • Specialty Coffee Beverage Additive: Puremade Toasted Black Sesame Syrup by Torani
    • Specialty Non-Coffee Beverage Standalone: Ginger Spice Chai Concentrate by Art of Tea
  • Coffee Design Awards:
    • Branding: Dear Francis
    • Packaging: Stereoscope

• First-ever World of Coffee Asia event to take place in Busan, South Korea from 1 to 4 May. The event will run in addition to WoC Dubai from 21 to 23 January 2024, as well as the main European event in June 2024. WoC Busan will also host the 2024 World Barista Championship.

• Pret A Manger opens first store in India. The UK food and coffee to-go chain’s new store is in Mumbai, and is operated by local business partner Reliance Brands Limited.

• Neumann Kaffee Gruppe appoints Ruben Scholz as new Chief Operating Officer. Scholz, who has worked at the green coffee trader for 25 years, joins the company’s Board of Management. Scholz will take responsibility for NKG’s global business operations and trading strategy.

• Coca-Cola credits Costa Coffee for 9% increase in coffee business growth last year. The company says Costa Coffee performed strongly in the UK and China, resulting in significant growth for its coffee division.

Tue, 25 Apr

• SCA announces 2023 US Coffee Championship winners. This year’s winners, who will go on to represent the US at their respective competitions, include:
  • Isaiah Sheese – Barista Champion
  • Wenbo Yang – Brewers Cup Champion
  • Jake Donaghy – Cup Tasters Champion
  • Sam Schroeder – Coffee in Good Spirits Champion
  • Piyapat Lapteerawup – Latte Art Champion
  • Andrew Coe – Roasting Champion

• Janis Podins wins 2023 Coffee Masters at London Coffee Festival. The three-time Latvian Barista Champion used a Bolivian coffee roasted by Coffee Collective in his routine.

• Good Food Awards 2023 announces 16 Coffee Winners recipients. This year’s winners Good Citizen Coffee Co.’s Chocolate Oat Milk Nitro Iced Coffee, a Colombia washed Laboyano coffee from Pedestrian Coffee, and a Burundi Gahahe Cima natural coffee from Blossom Coffee Roasters.

• Nestlé reports high single digit growth for coffee products during 2023 first quarter. The company says there was robust demand for Nescafé and Starbucks-branded products during the analysis period, including the Nescafé Farmers Origins capsule range.

• This year’s Australian Barista and Brewers Cup Championships to be held from 8 to 12 May 2023. The competitions will take place at The Industrique in Coburg North, Melbourne, with the winners going on to represent Australia at the World Coffee Championships in Athens, Greece in June.

• Rave Coffee opens new roastery in Cirencester, UK. The company says following a 22% turnover increase in 2022, it was able to invest £1 million (US $1.25 million) in a new roasting facility. The new roastery includes two Loring roasters, as well as a cupping room and coffee laboratory.

• Caribou Coffee announces plans for over 300 new franchise locations. The coffee chain signed several multi-unit development agreements with franchise partners in the US, following rapid expansion of its franchise programme in 2021.

• JDE Peet’s to combine out-of-home and Consumer Packaged Goods European segments. The coffee and tea company says the merger will allow it to apply a “true” omnichannel approach to the European market, as well as leveraging its brands more effectively.

Wed, 26 Apr

• New documentary series The Road to Milan previews at Specialty Coffee Expo. The documentary series follows 2021 WBC runner-up Andrea Allen as she prepared for the competition, and is set for official release in the coming months.

• Robusta futures reach 12-year high following growing demand and dwindling supplies. The robusta contract for July 2023 closed at US $2,444 per tonne on Monday – 2.6% higher than the previous session. ICE arabica futures also reached a six-month high of US $1.9345/lb.

• Pret A Manger raises price of coffee subscription service. The food and coffee to-go chain raised the price of its monthly subscription to £30 (US $37.34) – an increase of 20%. However, the service has now been expanded to include a 10% discount on all products sold in its shops.

• Last remaining defendant in four-year-old Kona coffee lawsuit agrees to pay US $12 million settlement. A judge has approved the settlement proposed by MNS Ltd., one of the original 21 defendants accused of falsely marketing their products as Hawaiian Kona coffee. The settlement is almost twice the amount of the second largest settlement in the case to date.

• US National Labor Relations Board accuses Starbucks of illegally refusing to negotiate at 144 unionised coffee shops. The NLRB asserts Starbucks illegally “failed and refused” to negotiate in good faith at the 144 locations by “insisting upon proposals that are predictably unacceptable to the union” and “demeaning and otherwise undermining the union’s chosen representatives”. Starbucks denies the allegations.

Thu, 27 Apr

• This year’s London Coffee Festival attracts some 30,000 visitors. The four-day event was held at Truman Brewery in Spitalfields, London, and included prominent UK and European roasters, such as Five Elephant and Manhattan Coffee Roasters. The festival also showcased some of the latest coffee innovations, including Heylo’s modular espresso machine.

• Macap releases new MI20 Touch and MI40 Touch grinders. The MI20 Touch features 58mm flat burrs and can be programmed to dispense up to four different doses, while the MI40 Touch includes 65mm flat burrs and a stepless adjustment system.

• New app coffee knowledge app Coffeem launches on Apple store. The free app, created by Eyup Mert, provides users with brewing and roasting tips, as well as advice from industry experts.

• Precipice Coffee becomes first solar-powered all-electric roaster in Maine, US. The company, which uses a Bellwether roaster, says the machine has helped it to reduce carbon emissions by up to 87%.

• Rokit Health launches new line of RTD wellness coffees in the UK. The cold brew and oat milk canned drinks are available in Mind Boost, Immunity Boost, and Energy Uplift flavours.

• Australia’s Market Development Facility and Palladium Group International release Sri Lanka Coffee Investment Prospectus. The report outlines MDF’s work in the Sri Lankan agricultural industry, including in coffee. MDF has supported more than 29,150 farmers in the country, including coffee producers.

Fri, 28 Apr

• Tallinn Coffee Festival takes place in Estonia. The annual two-day event will host the 2023 Estonian Cup Tasters Championship, as well as a series of lectures, panels, and cupping sessions.

• National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia announces Germán Alberto Bahamón Jaramillo as new General Manager. The FNC says the decision was made unanimously. Bahamón Jaramillo has more than 20 years’ experience holding senior level positions at companies such as Apple and Sony Ericsson.

• Brazilian Specialty Coffee Association generated some US $20 million in business at this year’s Specialty Coffee Expo. The organisation adds that Brazilian producers connected with more than 720 industry professionals at the event, most of which were new clients. The BSCA estimates it will generate a further US $100.1 million over the next 12 months.

• Roastery management software start-up Bean Mind launches online. The platform’s cloud-based software Beanventory integrates all roastery systems onto one interface, which the company says helps to improve operational efficiency.

• Dutch Coffee Championships 2023 to take place on 29 and 30 April. The event, which will be hosted by Alleborgh Espresso in Almere, will include the Dutch Barista, Brewers Cup, and Latte Art Championships.

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

• Mon, 17 Apr – Brazilian brand Mais1.Café aims to operate 900 stores by end of 2023. The coffee chain already operates more than 600 stores across Brazil, and has expanded into neighbouring Paraguay.

• Mon, 17 Apr – Scooter’s Coffee opens 600th US store in Tennessee. The drive-thru coffee chain plans to operate 800 US stores by the end of the year, and 1,000 stores by the end of 2025.

• Tue, 18 Apr – Nespresso and Starbucks Reserve launch limited-edition Remix Blend capsules. The blend, which includes Starbucks Aged Sumatra and Nespresso Ethiopoa Mokaboji, has notes of wild berry and sweet spice, with hints of citrus.

• Wed, 19 Apr – Café Kitsune opens first store in Taiwan. The French coffee and lifestyle brand also operates outlets in Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, South Korea, and Indonesia.

• Wed, 19 Apr – Starbucks launches Oleato beverages in Japan. Following launches in Italy and the US, the olive oil-infused coffee beverages are now available at more than 60 Starbucks stores across the country, including the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Tokyo.

• Thu, 20 Apr – Chamberlain Coffee launches new line of RTD plant-based cold brew lattes. The coffee lifestyle brand’s new products include Mocha Latte, Cinnamon Bun Latte, and Vanilla Latte.

• Sun, 23 Apr – Ground Control soft launches new brewer at Specialty Coffee Expo. The new prototype machine uses the same technology as the Ground Control Cyclops, but is more compact and includes an interactive colour-changing LED interface.

Photo credits: Specialty Coffee Association

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Want to keep up with current affairs in the coffee industry? Check out last week’s stories and make sure to read the latest Coffee Intelligence News & Opinion piece on how container shipping spot rates will affect the coffee industry.