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Vietnam was the top seller of unroasted beans to Japan for the first seven months of 2020 (Photo: VNA)

According to Japan’s Nikkei Aisa Review, the working from home trend is driving up demand for Robusta coffee beans, a key ingredient in making instant coffee, while sales of the higher-quality Arabica beans favoured by coffee shops have subsequently fallen.

Starbucks Coffee in Japan, for example, was forced to halt business at approximately 1,100 outlets due to Japan’s state of emergency back in April. The world-famous coffee chain was among the many cafes and dining establishments across the country to be ceased operation.

Between Robusta and Arabica, the latter is widely considered to be superior due to its aroma, taste, and overall quality. It is therefore used by the majority of cafes and restaurants.

"Even after the state of emergency was lifted, customer traffic, at cafes and restaurants, has not fully recovered, keeping demand for arabica weak," said Masaomi Arakawa, head of coffee at S. Ishimitsu & Co., a Kobe-based distributor.

Reality, however, proves Arakawa wrong. Demand for Robusta a cheaper and more bitter variety that is used in instant coffee products has remained strong as a result of COVID-19 restrictions keeping people at home. Indeed, figures show that demand for instant coffee has spiked, according to food processor Ajinomoto AGF, with sales of instant coffee products between April and June enjoying annual growth of approximately 10%.

While Arabica is used by the majority of cafes and restaurants, Robusta is the main ingredients of instant coffees (Photo: Coffee of Die Magazine)

The article points out that changes in relation to consumption patterns have also affected Japan's imports of unroasted coffee beans, with the country being the leading seller of unroasted beans to Japan for the first seven months of the year, according to trade data. A total of 67,392 tonnes of unroasted beans were imported from the nation during the period, a rise of 26% on-year.

Furthermore, imports from Brazil, the majority of which comprised of arabica beans, suffered a decline of 40% during the period to 63,850 tonnes. Simultaneously, imports from Vietnam overtook those from Brazil to become the leading coffee supplier to the Japanese market.

At present, the country is on track to beat Brazil in terms of coffee supply for the entirety of the year, said Shiro Ozawa, an adviser with Tokyo-based specialty coffee trader Wataru & Co, adding that this is a historic moment.

The first 296 tons of coffee exported to EU after the Free Trade Agreement In 16 September morning, Vietnam officially exported the first batch of 296 tons of coffee to Europe under the European-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement.

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