Jan 22 2009
Coffee in the News
Nothing I love better with my morning coffee than the morning newspaper. This morning, coffee is in the news in a few of my favorite web sites. Over at the Arizona Republic’s Arizona Living page, there’s a great article about reading coffee labels. You may have guessed from reading my posts about my favorite coffees and coffee roasters that I’m passionate about the capacity of coffee to do good in this world. The fact is that coffee is the second most traded item on the world markets, second only to crude oil. It is one of the largest industries in the world, and there are more people who depend on coffee for their livelihood than on any other single product that is sold or traded on the world market. Supporting coffee importers, coffee roasters, coffee retailers and coffee shops that support socially conscious methods of growing and buying coffee is one of the most potent ways that a single person can affect millions of people living around the world. The article at the Republic talks about the differences in the various label designations that you’ll find on coffee labels. If you’ve ever wondered about the difference between Fair Trade coffee and Direct Trade coffee, or the difference between Certified Organic coffee and Shade Grown coffee, this article has a quick cheat-sheet to coffee labels that will help you understand.
And speaking of the coffee markets, Brad Zigler posted about his belief that the coffee futures market will be turning bullish - in fact, he’s got a few charts posted that show the upturn already starting. He points out a few reasons that he thinks coffee prices will be on the rise over the next few months - and they’re the very reasons that I pointed out a few months ago: weather and disease in some of the biggest coffee growing regions in the world. Specifically, Brazil and Colombia have both been hit by unexpectedly wet rainy seasons that have affected the coffee crops.
Zigler is focused on the South American coffee producers, but the African coffee producing nations have also been hit hard by weather and disease. The production figures for both Kenya and Ethiopia - producers of major specialty coffees Kenya AA, Ethiopian Yrgacheffe and Ethiopian Sidoma - are down this year by as much as 25%. We all know basic economics - supply is down, demand stays the same, prices go up. That’s going to mean that some coffee importers are going to be making some money - and coffee processors are going to be paying more for their coffee.
That means that you and I, coffee lovers, will be paying more for our coffee in about 6 months to a year. What to do about it? Well, here’s my suggestion - green coffee beans cost less than roasted ones already. Green coffee beans also keep well - since you haven’t released the volatile oils in the bean yet, they don’t start losing any flavor at all. So. Beat next year’s high coffee prices by buying green coffee beans in bulk this year and roast it up as you drink it. Not only will you get cheap coffee - you’ll get the best coffee you can possibly find.
