Lower thirds:

00:02 Report by Warda Imram
00:26 Stefan Richter, Berliner Kaffeerösterei
01:05 Stefan Richter, Berliner Kaffeerösterei
02:21 Philipp Reichel, Berlin Coffee Festival 
02:56 Christoph Gornott, Potsdam Institute of Climate Impact Research

Script:

Coffee prices are shooting up globally. Each day, three billion cups of this morning beverage are consumed all over the world.  

But prices are rising dramatically. In Germany, roasted coffee prices have gone up by 43% this year compared to last year. Here at the Berliner Kaffeerösterei, their strategy is to stick with one price point for the year until that harvest lasts. 

+++ SOT Stefan Richter, Berliner Kaffeerösterei +++
"We also don't compromise, as I said earlier, if we have a high purchase price, then we pass that price on. I won't try to lower the quality of the coffee in any way. Over the years, we have built up a customer base, we have a lot of regular customers, a lot of repeat buyers who trust us and trust this quality."

This mid-sized roastery was founded 26 years ago and have secured raw coffee from their various connections all over the world – from Colombia to Yemen to Ethiopia. 

So, what’s behind the recent spikes in prices? 

+++ SOT Stefan Richter, Berliner Kaffeerösterei +++
"Climate change makes itself known. When it should rain, it doesn’t, and when we don’t need rain, it rains a lot. Brazil also has a second problem that negatively impacts harvest – that's frost, that damages the plants. The forecast for the future is that prices could come down or it stays stable at a new high."

Climate change is a big reason for high prices. The coffee plant is sensitive, and changes to temperature or atmosphere could damage the taste.  

Brazil, the world’s largest coffee exporter, lost one-fifth of its harvest to droughts, frost and wildfires – this sent global prices soaring. Brazil is also the lead exporter of Arabica coffee which is very popular all over the world. 

High US tariffs on Brazil mean the US is importing less of Brazilian coffee and Germany has increased its imports – and is now the biggest importer of Brazilian coffee as of August this year. 

Europeans are heavy coffee drinkers, Finland and Luxembourg take top spots for the most coffee consumed in a country.  
 
+++ SOT Philipp Reichel, Berlin Coffee Festival +++
"I mean, coffee is one of the most not only traded but also consumed goods in the world. The prices are getting so high. Unfortunately, because of climate crisis, global trade wars, all these kinds of elements. But we're now getting to the point that actually the price is so high that we can speak of the farmers being paid what they should be paid for."

Conditions in coffee growing countries need to be studied and adapted to. Making the coffee process climate resilient would really help harvest, for example, moving coffee fields higher up into colder temperatures or using agroforestry to integrate trees for shade and protection. 

+++ SOT Christoph Gornott, Potsdam Institute of Climate Impact Research +++
"So, a system which could buffer different types of schocks. So, if there's a drought, if there's a heat wave, there might also be too much rain in a single event, and all these could happen. And the system should be resilient."

These solutions require big investments in infrastructure and could take years to complete. 

So, the price of your morning cup is shaped by multiple factors, but this little cup will have an even bigger price tag in the future.

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