Covid-19 supply chain hang ups and volatile weather spells trouble for coffee prices
Coffee prices are nearing record highs and caffeine-addicts fear it could climb even higher as a result of coronavirus-related supply chain hang ups and volatile weather conditions in Brazil.
Prices have often circled $1 per pound, but coffee futures doubled in late July, touching costs not seen since 2014, the LA Times first reported.
Although the cost per pound has eased slightly since then, coffee futures – the price bulk-buying businesses purchase in advance – sit at around $1.90 per pound.
While some caffeine-crazed shoppers fear higher prices, a further jump is not guaranteed as a spike in coffee prices on the international futures market does not always make its way to the average consumer.
A period of drought in coffee-rich Brazil, followed by two frosts in July, scuppered the regions optimal growing conditions.
The Covid-19 pandemic then made matters worse when it left supply chain’s littered with labour shortages, a trickling supply of shipping containers, and a number of other production hang ups.
In curbing the country’s coffee output, wholesale prices for the prized bean rocketed to more than $2 per pound.