Rising coffee prices worldwide are often driven by climate change, reducing crop yield in coffee-producing countries. As the industry changes, these surging coffee prices undoubtedly affect consumers seeking to purchase high-quality coffee beans for their morning brew. Yet as coffee prices surge, producers are also struggling to maintain sustainable coffee farming practices within the specialty coffee space without impacting profitability.
Below, Non-Fiction Coffee’s Director of Sales & Business Development, Jeff Daniels, sheds some light on what’s really driving coffee prices up and why sustainability could be at risk in the coffee supply chain.
The rising cost of coffee: What’s really behind it?
According to Daniels, the most consistently destabilizing force driving today’s coffee pricing surge is climate.
“I think of our producing partners, Max and Claudia Pérez in Guatemala, who had a natural stream flowing through their farm, Finca La Hermosa, when they bought it in 2011. Today, that stream is completely gone. They have had to invest in new water sources and infrastructure. These costs inevitably travel down the supply chain. In Brazil, partners have faced a whiplash of extremes: severe drought and heat followed by a record frost that had devastating impacts, continuing into the upcoming 2025 crop. Climate shifts like these are raising costs across the board,” he shares.
Of course, Daniels does acknowledge that other pressures are also impacting coffee prices, such as politically motivated tariffs. However, he shares that these issues are short-term compared to the major issue of climate. For farmers such as Max and Claudia, “Climate is not an abstract policy debate. It is a daily reality shaping their survival and livelihoods,” he says.
Why sustainability is at risk in the coffee supply chain
With higher prices, sustainability practices often become harder to maintain for products and roasters.
“There is always a temptation, one that makes sense from a business standpoint, to seek out cheaper coffees from producers we do not have long-standing relationships with. Many roasters likely do just that, and no consultant would fault them. But for us, these moments are when we double down on values and relationships rather than compromise.”
To balance cost pressures while maintaining a commitment to sustainability, roasters like Non-Fiction coffee must seek out value-aligned partners and customers who want to share in upholding these practices.
How conscious consumers can respond
“In many ways, we are entering a new era of coffee,” says Daniels. “I do not see prices going back to what they once were, and that is not entirely bad. Over time, the market will stabilize somewhat, but I hope that more consumers will come to recognize what truly distinguishes great coffee,” he shares.
In the meantime, Daniels recommends conscious coffee consumers seek out roasters who think from a producer’s perspective and act in their best interest.
While many customers do not truly understand the cost of sustainable coffee production, Daniels says it’s also the job of the roasters to do a better job of giving voice to farmers so people can understand the value of high-quality, responsibly produced coffee.
“I believe the most impactful thing people can do today is to follow accounts of coffee farmers and thoughtful importers, something truly unique and impactful in today’s world that wasn’t there in previous generations. The farmer’s voice has more access to consumer ears than ever before, and I, with intentional bias, invite you to follow some incredible voices we are so fortunate to represent and work alongside: Visibility is a powerful tool to understanding the farming and importing perspective,” says Daniels.
