Coffee Industry Thoughts
There are many trends that sweep the nation each year. Some keep to certain areas or regions and others are nation wide. Some are fleeting and others seem to have a great impact on our society. One such impact has been from the gourmet coffee industry.
Over the past several years the coffee industry has exploded across the nation, as can be seen by the number of coffee shops that seem to be popping up on every corner of every large city and small town. Visit Seattle, for example, and you’ll see a coffee house every couple of blocks.
It’s simply amazing what java has done to the minds and taste buds of people everywhere. That distinct aroma sets our minds at ease every morning. It wakes us up and gets us going. One of the cool things about coffee these days is the vast selection. The gourmet coffee industry is much more than the old style canned grounds and drip pots. The new millennium is flooded with an array of espresso drinks, frozen cappuccinos, dessert coffees, and more. Good quality coffee is even available on grocery store shelves!
In the past a cup of coffee was seen as a morning beverage that some people enjoyed. Coffee was also served to accompany dessert at the end of a meal. Today coffee is created. You no longer ask for a cup of coffee, you recite a list of ingredients you want in your cup.
Ordering a cup of coffee and waiting for it to be prepared is now a 5 minute event, and the coffee industry is grinning all the way to the bank. Coffee has always been slightly more costly than other consumable items that are purchased, but with its increase in popularity the costs are on a steady rise. The days of coffee being a complimentary beverage along with a meal are coming to an end. (My wife refers to most restaurant brewed coffee as “hot, dark liquid.” Some places are starting to use the gourmet coffees in their brews and it makes a difference.)
Are you a coffee drinker? More to the point, did the specialty coffee industry nab you as well? I’m not going to lie; I was sucked in years ago. Although I was not a fan of mom and pop’s drip beverage, I did get hooked after trying an iced mocha latte. Who came up with this stuff? Iced coffee became my thing. These days I have my very own espresso machine and purchase fresh coffee beans each week. Yeah, I’m pretty hardcore. My wife and I prefer the fresh stuff.
Regardless of your coffee preferences and habits, you’ll surely have no trouble satisfying them in this caffeine-driven world. With the abundance of coffee shops these days, I can hardly fathom how they all stay in business, but it must be a killer business. Come on, four bucks a drink. I thought they were just espresso and milk with maybe a shot of syrup.
The specialty coffee industry has certainly made their demands regarding price, and no one’s protesting. Check out the line every morning at your local Starbuck’s. Even in the smaller towns I’ve traveled to, there is always a coffee shop or two, and they’re international. Beirut has three Starbucks! Let’s face it; we all want that morning java buzz. While the price of fine lattes is definitely nothing to shake a stick at, we all still conform. For some bizarre reason, that tantalizing smell of freshly ground coffee beans gets us every time.
About the Coffee Growers:
The coffee industry is making an effort to treat the coffee growers more fairly. As the popularity in coffee has increased throughout our country the coffee industry has been studied more closely. These studies have caused grave concern for many people. Historically the coffee industry has paid the coffee grower a very minimal sum for the coffee beans. The growing, harvesting and sorting of coffee beans is extremely labor intensive. Many people have thought that this is why coffee is so expensive.
In reality it is the coffee broker, who acts as the middle man between grower and buyer, which the industry pays the largest sum of money to. The coffee broker uses the language barrier and lack of financial knowledge against the coffee grower to pay very little for the coffee beans. The broker in turn charges the coffee buyer the true value of the beans.
The result is that the grower is paid pennies for their labor and the broker gets rich and the consumer still pays a high cost for coffee. Things are improving in the coffee industry with the development of Fair Trade commissions.
Movements like this have helped educate the coffee growers so they get a fair price for their product. Some organizations and individuals are purchasing coffee directly from the grower, which gives him fair compensation and also takes the broker out of the loop.
This is helping to make the coffee industry more grower-friendly, but don’t expect it to decrease the cost of your next cup of coffee. The coffee industry still has some things to change before it is completely equitable, but the increased consumption of coffee should give it the incentive to run a fairer trade operation.
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