High prices won’t keep South Africans from their morning cup of coffee

What would you be without that hot morning cup of coffee to get you into your groove?

The right beans are enough to make us feel like we can take on the grind and emerge stronger, and two-thirds of South Africans agree the day starts with a good old cup of coffee.

Well, a good blend of coffee is worth celebrating hence 1 October is International Coffee Day – dedicated to paying homage to the bitter yet awakening beverage.

Global production of coffee stands beyond 10 million tonnes annually, with more than 2.25 billion cups of coffee consumed worldwide, according to Eighty20 – a research and data analytics firm.

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What’s your bev?

Instant coffee remains the most consumed caffeine beverage, enjoyed by 19.8 million South Africans daily, according to MAPS dataset.

“More than half of coffee drinkers consume Ricoffy, a clear South African favourite that is drunk by more people than Frisco and Jacobs Kronung combined,” said Eighty20 Director, Andrew Fulton.

Despite rising coffee prices, Mzansi continues to enjoy their favourite caffeine beverage, consumer insights by Eighty20 have shown.

According to Stats SA, however, the price of hot beverages had increased significantly, with an annual inflation increase from 8.7% in June to 9% in July.

Ground coffee appeared popular among the wealthier population, with only 1,4 million daily drinkers.  

“One would think that with the ubiquity of coffee shops in major SA metros, the number of ground coffee drinkers would be higher,” Fulton said.

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Coffee outlets

BrandMapp’s survey of households earning more than R10,000 monthly indicates the top 4 coffee outlets respondents plan to visit sometime this year are:

• Woolworths Café – 21%
• Seattle Coffee – 16%
• Starbucks – 15%
• Vida e Caffe – 12%

While approximately 21,7 million South Africans start their day with a cup of coffee, 18,6 million others get their daily fix from drinking tea.

Meanwhile, Rooibos is enjoyed by 14 million South Africans.

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