Coffee News Recap, 24 Feb: PepsiCo recalls thousands of RTD Starbucks frappuccinos, World AeroPress Championship publishes 2023 rules and regulations & other stories

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

Mon, 20 Feb

• Rwanda’s coffee export revenue increased by 34% in 2022. According to the country’s National Agricultural Export Development Board, despite a 2% increase in production volumes, export revenue totalled around US $105 million last year.

• PepsiCo recalls thousands of RTD Starbucks vanilla frappuccinos in US following concerns they may contain glass. According to the US Food and Drug Administration, the affected products have the following expiration dates: 8 March 2023, 20 May 2023, 4 June 2023, and 10 June 2023.

• Fairtrade and International Trade Centre sign agreement to improve climate adaptation and gender equity in agricultural sector. Both organisations will work with smallholder farmers – including coffee producers – to improve a number of social and environmental sustainability practices.

• Costa Coffee appoints Philippe Schaillee as new CEO. Schaillee, who formerly served as executive vice president of Products and Innovation at Groupe SEB, will take assume the role on 10 April 2023.

• International Coffee Organisation announces studies into living income benchmark for four producing countries. The ICO says studies into living income price references for Honduras, Rwanda, Togo, and Angola will allow it calculate baseline coffee prices which provide farmers with a decent standard of living.

• World AeroPress Championship publishes rules and regulations for 2023 competition. The WAC rules and regulations are split into four separate categories: Event Format, The Rules, Judging Criteria, and Clarifications.

• Marco Beverage Systems launches ColdBRU system. The new brewer can prepare cold brew in less than three hours, and results in an average extraction level of 19% and 4% total dissolved solids (TDS) level.

• Black Rifle Coffee Co. faces lawsuit after allegedly failing to pay royalties to RTD beverage consulting firm. Strategy and Execution Inc. is suing Black Rifle for hundreds of thousands of dollars in what it claims are “unpaid, past-due royalties” following successful sales of the coffee company’s RTD products.

Tue, 21 Feb

• Anacafé partners with ProfilePrint to implement AI technology on Guatemalan coffee farms. Anacafé says the digital platform will allow producers to better assess coffee quality and yields, as well as implementing more sustainable farming practices.

• Europe to account for 45% of global coffee capsule market growth by 2027. Research firm Technavio says that while it estimates the compound annual growth rate of the global capsule market will decline by 6.16%, the value of the market will also increase by almost US $9.5 million by 2027.

• IDH, JDE Peet’s, and Vietnamese government partner on low-emission coffee initiative. The project will support the implementation of low-emission coffee production, which includes carbon insetting initiatives, across more than 30,000 ha of land in several of the country’s provinces. IDH says the project will support over 48,000 Vietnamese farmers.

• Nespresso Professional launches three new Starbucks capsules. The Starbucks House Blend, Starbucks Blonde Espresso Roast, and Starbucks Espresso Roast are available in the US.

• Founder of Kahawa 1893 receives US $350,000 investment on US TV show Shark Tank. Margaret Nyamumbo successfully sold a share in her Kenyan women-focused company to British businesswoman Emma Grede.

• Cropster calls for coffee shops to test its new espresso machine connector BrewBeacon. Cropster’s new data tracking systems records data for up to four groupheads at a time. Successful applicants will need to complete three short surveys, provide qualitative feedback via video calls, and report potential bugs.

• Brazilian coffee farmers report concerns about coffee leaf rust and phoma following humid conditions. Cepea says farmers in Minas Gerais and other regions are reporting that heavy rainfall and high levels of humidity are delaying the application of fertilisers and pesticides. Farmers say this is causing unripe cherries to fall off plants, resulting in higher instances of certain pests and diseases.

Wed, 22 Feb

• Nguyen Coffee Supply launches rare anaerobic robusta coffee. The limited-edition coffee is sourced from the Vietnamese Central Highlands, and has tasting notes of candied orange peel, passion fruit, and cloves.

• Blue Bottle to launch new Yemeni coffee as part of Exceedingly Rare programme. The coffee will be available as whole bean for US $80 per 100g, as well as instant coffee for US $65 per three 100ml servings.

• Starbucks launches new Oleato range of olive oil infused coffee beverages in Italy. The new drinks range, which is infused with Partanna cold pressed extra virgin olive oil, includes the Oleato Caffè Latte, Oleato Iced Shaken Espresso, and Oleato Golden Foam Cold Brew.

• JDE Peet’s reports 16.4% increase in total sales in 2022. However, the company also reported a 6% decline in full-year core profits – which is largely a result of rising costs.

• US Food and Drug Administration drafts labelling recommendations for plant milks. The USDA recommends nutrient statements to be clearly visible on plant milk products so that consumers can make more informed purchasing decisions. For example, the USDA recommends displaying a label on plant milks which says “contains lower amounts of Vitamin D and calcium than [cow’s] milk”.

• Dutch Bros reports 44.1% revenue increase in 2022. The US drive-thru coffee chain says growth was primarily driven by the opening of 133 new stores. Dutch Bros aims to open a further 150 new locations in 2023, which would bring its total to 800.

• Pret A Manger to replace smoothies, frappes, and milkshakes with iced drinks by summer 2023. The coffee and food-to-go chain says the move is its “biggest drinks innovation in more than five years”. It’s believed that Pret made the decision in response to complaints from its subscription service customers about the availability of blended drinks.

Thu, 23 Feb

• Baratza launches Encore ESP grinder. The new version of the company’s classic grinder includes high-carbon steel burrs which are better designed to prepare espresso as well as filter coffee. The grinder also includes a 54mm anti-static dosing cup, and is compatible with Baratza’s single-dose hopper.

• Export value of China’s Pu’er coffee increased by 296.4% in 2022. The Chinese government has been heavily investing in the region’s coffee production, which produced 55,700 tonnes of coffee in 2022. Exports to Europe, the US, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia totalled nearly ¥462 million (US $67 million) last year.

• World of Coffee Athens opens applications for lecture and workshop proposals. Applications for lecture proposals close on 20 March, while applications for workshop proposals are open until 8 March. World of Coffee Athens will take place from 22 to 24 June 2023.

• Sucafina opens its largest-ever wet mill in Pu’er, China. The company’s new wet mill can process more than 15 tonnes of cherry per hour, and includes a number of features to reduce its environmental impact, such as a zero-discharge closed-circuit wastewater treatment system and a solar water heater.

• SCA welcomes four new licensed competition bodies. New members include the Egypt Coffee Community, the Qatar Coffee Community, the Bolivian Coffee Alliance, and Caracas Quiere Café in Venezuela. National Coffee Championship winners from these countries can now take part in the 2023 World Coffee Championships.

• Direct trade platform Eteakol partners with more than 30 coffee and tea producers in India. The B2B platform, which first launched in 2021, helps producers connect with importers and roasters.

Fri, 24 Feb

• SCA announces lecture schedule for 2023 Specialty Coffee Expo. The event, which will take place from 21 to 23 April in Portland, Oregon, will host more than 60 lectures covering a number of topics like extract chilling, roast curves, water quality, and coffee economics.

• World Coffee Alliance to host first episode of Alternative Coffee Protocols roundtable series on 28 February. Exploring the other side of coffee will take place at 15:00 GMT. Speakers will include CEO at Enveritas, David Browning, and Group Sustainability Manager at UCC Europe, Malcolm Hett.

• Beyond the Beans launches Curated Robusta Experience Box. Food and coffee writer Bhavi Patel and Indian coffee farm Anai Kadu partnered on the box, which includes robusta cascara tea, spread, and sweetened syrup, as well as sundried robusta blossoms. The box also comes with accompanying recipe cards.

• The Barista League La Rumba takes place in Bogotá. The one-of-a-kind event, which will be hosted by Varietale, forms part of the Barista League’s 2022 Mystery Coffee Vacation prize. As part of the unique competition format, each team is matched with two international baristas from the Mystery Coffee Vacation.

• Alliance for Coffee Excellence and Anacafé announce 2023 One of a Kind Guatemala Private Collection Auction. The third auction of its kind will take place on 3 August 2023, and registration is open now.

• RAVE Coffee to release limited-edition coffee and cocoa Easter egg in March. The UK coffee roaster has partnered with Coco Chemistry in Wiltshire to create a caramelised white chocolate egg made with ground Costa Rica Caraigres coffee and 100% traceable cocoa. It will be available to purchase on RAVE’s website from 13 March 2023.

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

• Wed, 15 Feb – Starbucks opens 5,000th Asia Pacific store in South Korea. The company plans to open a further 400 stores in the Asia-Pacific region in 2023.

• Thu, 16 Feb – “Starbucks is winning the fight against unions” Bloomberg reports. The publication reports the pace of unionisation “has slowed down in recent months”, which reflects the company’s perceived “push” to “stop any organising”. Workers United says Starbucks refuses “to work in good faith with their partners to improve working conditions”.

• Thu, 16 Feb – Groupe SEB acquires La San Marco from Massimo Zanetti Beverage Group. Groupe SEB says the acquisition of the coffee machine and grinder manufacturer and distributor will help to strengthen its presence in the European market.

• Fri, 17 Feb – GoFundBean published findings of recent coffee worker wage survey. The non-profit received responses from 240 US coffee professionals. Results found that while 92% of salaried employees receive some kind of benefits, only 62% of hourly workers have the same level of job benefits.

• Fri, 17 Feb – Fairtrade introduces Living Income Reference Price for Honduran coffee farmers. The Living Income Reference Price for Honduras is 94 Lempira (US $3.89) per kilo of dried parchment, which Fairtrade says is within the range that producers have been receiving over the past harvest season.

• Fri, 17 Feb – Starbucks gives out free menstrual products to UK employees. In partnership with TOTM brand, the coffee chain will distribute free sanitary pads and tampons to its workers.

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