The End of Coffee (Not Literally)

The coffee industry currently has a commodity chain that involves producers, middlemen exporters, importers, roasters, and retailers before reaching the consumer. Middlemen exporters purchase coffee directly from small farmers. They typically purchase the coffee below market price, keeping a high percentage for themselves. Large coffee estates and plantations often export their own harvests or have direct arrangements with a transnational coffee processing or distributing company. Under either arrangement, large producers can sell at prices set by the New York Coffee Exchange. These large plantations generally pay workers extremely low wages, typically two to three dollars a day, and offer poor working conditions.

Here in CR there are different prices for coffee compared to the states. Back home we import over 1200 thousand tons of coffee each year while CR has no reason to import any. The demand is normal and the supply is high in CR, while in the states the demand is high and the supply is lower. A one pound bag of Cafe Britt in CR is $5, but in the states it is $9 not including the international shipping costs. At Del Cafe Tal, we were able to purchase coffee for $10 a pound while in the states coffee boutiques and large scale stores purchase the coffee for $15 a pound. The mark up is created through middlemen and can be even higher, unless significant effort is put forth in order to reduce or eliminate them like in Del Cafe Tal's case. Starbucks sells a Costa Rican coffee called Tarrazu that is $13 a pound. The description is full of lavish descriptions to make the coffee sound different and great. The price of coffee depends on its classification. The price varies significantly if the coffee is Fair Trade, organic certified, shade-grown, or sungrown. Some of these methods are healthier for the environment in general, while others are not, so it is up to a eco-friendly consumer to purchase the more expensive coffee.

Fun Fact: Twelve billion pounds of coffee is consumed around the globe annually, and the United States alone has over 130 million coffee drinkers.