Louisiana Coffee Roasters Raising Prices After Being Squeezed By New Tariffs – CoffeeTalk

Louisiana coffee roasters are raising prices due to increased tariffs on coffee beans, which have made it more expensive to import the commodity. J.M. Smucker Co., a roasting company for Folgers, Dunkin’, and Café Bustelo, plans to increase prices in response to the 10% tax on all imports announced by President Donald Trump in April. Community Coffee, a Baton Rouge-based roastery, has increased its charges due to the rise in green coffee beans prices. French Truck Coffee, a New Orleans-based chain with locations in Baton Rouge and Memphis, Tennessee, added a temporary 4% surcharge on all in-store and online coffee-related purchases.

Americans’ coffee habit depends almost exclusively on imported beans, with Brazil, Colombia, and Vietnam being the top three coffee producers. Roasters often purchase beans months or even a year in advance, and many rushed to stock up before Trump’s April tariffs went into effect. Now, those stockpiles are running low, and importers say many of their customers are bracing for even higher prices if Trump’s threats of additional tariffs on major coffee producers like Brazil go into effect.

Lauren Fink, owner of Cherry Coffee Roasters, a specialty coffee roastery with cafes in both Gretna and New Orleans, said she was hopeful that trade negotiations would ultimately spare coffee beans. She held off on raising prices on bags of roasted beans until May, when it became clear that the rising costs to run her business weren’t going to subside.

In conclusion, the increasing costs of coffee beans and the impact of tariffs on the local coffee industry are forcing Louisiana coffee roasters to raise prices.

Trump administration officials have argued that tariffs will result in better trade deals and bring industries like manufacturing back to the U.S., but only a handful of trade deals have been reached. Trump threatened to impose a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods beginning Aug. 1, citing the country’s treatment of its former president, Jair Bolsonaro, who is facing charges of trying to overturn an election loss.

The effect of this tariff on coffee is significant, as it will make it unfeasible for most coffee companies to purchase Brazilian coffee if the 50% tariff is charged. Coffee is the largest containerized import commodity at the Port of New Orleans, amounting to about 16,000 containers a year. Around 42% of those imports come from Brazil, and coffee imports have been slowing in recent months.

Even before tariffs, coffee prices have been at historic highs, primarily due to weather conditions in Brazil and Vietnam that affected the crop in those countries. Highland Coffees owner, Clarke Cadzow, said that tariff concerns just add another layer of stress and anxiety to coffee importers, roasters, and retailers in the US as they try to keep their prices low but figure out what they need to charge to cover their costs.

Only a fraction of the coffee offered at Highland comes from Brazil, but it is “popular among customers.” If the cost of Brazilian coffee goes up considerably, it will cause demand for beans from other regions to spike, raising prices. Higher prices could push more customers to try and roast their coffee at home, Cambre said.

Catherine Mansell, director of products and programs at Current Crop Roasting Shop on Magazine Street, a retail store focused on at-home, do-it-yourself coffee education, said they have seen an uptick in recent months in customers interested in home roasting as a way to save money. The shop has around 75 different beans from all over the world, and roasting stations that allow customers to roast beans themselves.

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