Remote working, prices drive U.S. home coffee consumption to highest in 14 years

Remote working and the need to save money are leading to an increase in coffee consumption at home in the United States, in a reversal of a pre-pandemic trend of increasing consumption at cafes, according to industry data and analysts.

A survey from the U.S. National Coffee Association released on Tuesday showed 85 per cent of the people in the country that said they drank coffee in the past day did it at home, the highest amount on that classification since 2012.

The survey also showed that among those declaring they drank coffee out-of-home, most said it was at their offices or in transit (drive-through), with a smaller part saying they walked into a coffee shop.

Hybrid lifestyles, with less commuting, and the economic pressure felt by part of the population are two major factors driving the increase in home consumption of coffee, said Gerd Müller-Pfeiffer, a former Nestle executive and now an adviser to the coffee industry.

Coffee prices in the U.S. remain historically high after production shortfalls in major producing nations drove prices to record highs late last year.

A third factor for increased home consumption, Müller-Pfeiffer said, is equipment quality.

“Home machines now deliver near out-of-home quality,” he said.

Despite the changes in how coffee is consumed in the United States, the world’s largest market for the beverage, the number of people that said they had coffee in the past day was stable at 66 per cent of survey respondents, said the NCA, more than any other beverage including bottled water.

U.S. coffee drinkers consume an average of 2.8 cups per day, resulting in more than 500 million cups of coffee served every day in the country.

(Reporting by Marcelo Teixeira; Editing by Aurora Ellis)