Coffee price rises but quality drops

Press, 24 February 1977, Page 4

Coffee price rises but quality drops

Rising prices and falling quality are facing coffee drinkers who prefer percolated coffee to the instant variety. One' recent consignment of coffee beans was considered to be of such poor quality that it was rejected by a coffee distributor. [ Not only had the quality [dropped but prices had risen, he said. Eighteen months ago. I coffee had been 40c to 50c I per lb. The last consignment [had been $2.32 per lb and the next consignment, due in ! about one week, w'ould be I more than $3 per lb. | The distributor said that [the quality of beans imported [today was nowhere near as [good as it used to be. i “The quality of the supply from Brazil that we received last month was such that we could not accept it,” he said. “It contained a lot of ‘stinkers’ (bitter beans). The beans were too bitter to blend out, as can often be done when a consignment contains some bad beans.” Mr R. Smith, the Christchurch manager of the firm [that imported the beans.! .Harrisons and Crosfield IA.N.Z., Ltd, declined to comment about the quality. I Mr L. R. Berry, manager of the N.Z. Coffee and, Spice Company, said that his I

’ company had stopped order o ing supplies until there wg< an improvement in tht ’iquality of imported beans 1 His company had placed it 1 'last order at the end of lasi f year, although supplies i[ ordered during 1976 were stil arriving. i The manager of Brown and Heaton, Ltd (Mr T. L. Smith; . said that every new consign.iment of beans was more . expensive than the last one. :[ “We have not had any two t consignments at the same » price for a long time,” he i said. “We missed one cony signment because of the high price, thinking we would t wait to see what prices were I doing. But they have just s kept on increasing." Mr Smith said that he had ■ noticed no change in sales i in spite of price increases ( People who wanted good cofJfce were prepared to pav for f it. There had been problems • in getting supplies but the > situation was now back to : norma!. t The proprietor of The Coffee Counter (Mr B. R. Coco- ■ rempas) said that his price i increases had not diminished .demand. I “I don’t really think that [price rises affect our type of [trade to a great extent.” he ■ said. “People are prepared to i pay quite high prices for i quality." ________ _