Coca-Cola ventures into premium specialty coffee
Posted by TheShot on 17 Nov 2006 | Tagged as: Consumer Trends, Foreign Brew, Restaurant Coffee
ChannelNewsAsia published an article today on Coca-Cola’s venture into coffee distribution in Singapore: Channelnewsasia.com - Coca-Cola ventures into premium specialty coffee. Coca-Cola has been investing in coffee service for quite some time. In previous posts here, we’ve covered their development of Far Coast pod systems — among other patents. As one of Wall Street’s darling growth stocks, and a stock represented in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Coke continually seeks out new revenue streams to keep the party train going.
Some at the company are banking heavily on future growth in coffee — by essentially leveraging their existing beverage distribution channels to also support barista-free coffee service for restaurants and cafés. (Despite oddities like Coke Blāk, they show no interest in direct retail of coffee products.) Of course, a company like Coca-Cola typically has senior vice presidents and their minions at odds with each other over company strategy, so anything is possible. But for the past few years, the momentum seems to be in the coffee lobbyists’ favor.
Normally I’d be quite skeptical of their efforts — and, in particular, any effort to make decent espresso from pods or systems that operate like a push-button soda fountain. However, a couple weeks ago I had the pleasure of having dinner with Kenneth Davids, of CoffeeReview (and author of one of my favorite coffee books, Home Coffee Roasting). David has been consulting for Coca-Cola for five years now — and they’ve even made him a full-time job offer to leave his coffee consulting practice behind. For Coca-Cola to make moves like that, they have to be serious about coffee — and David would lend them instant credibility. So this is progress that’s worth keeping an eye on.
4 Comments »
on 29 Nov 2006 at 10:19 pm -05:00T 1.TheShot.coffeeratings.com » 12 Best Cups of Coffee of 2006 said …
[...] In the most recent issue of Fast Company, they named Coffee Klatch Belle Espresso blend among the “12 Best Cups of Coffee of 2006″: Fast Company Magazine | 12 Best Cups of Coffee of 2006. The coffees were reviewed by noneother than Kenneth Davids. [...]
on 30 Jan 2007 at 1:36 pm -05:00T 2.Espresso News and Reviews - TheShot.coffeeratings.com » Paradise Roasters: A global search for taste of Paradise said …
[...] Today’s Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune featured an article on a Twin Cities area roaster who has made quite a name for themselves, Paradise Roasters: A global search for taste of Paradise. Kenneth Davids‘ Coffee Review has scored some of their roasted bean stocks at above 90 points (out of 100) fifteen times in the past couple of years, which is practically unheard of. Some of the credit goes to Paradise’s policy to ship beans within 24-hours of roasting. [...]
on 20 May 2007 at 2:29 pm -04:00T 3.Espresso News and Reviews - TheShot.coffeeratings.com » Coca-Cola FoodService Partners with Juan Valdez said …
[...] We’ve been monitoring Coca-Cola’s murky interests in the coffee business for some time now. The most obvious example being their patent filings in recent years, which has lead to — among other things — their launch of Far Coast coffee pod and machine systems for food service retailers. [...]
on 20 May 2007 at 2:30 pm -04:00T 4.Espresso News and Reviews - TheShot.coffeeratings.com » Coca-Cola FoodService Partners with Juan Valdez said …
[...] We’ve been monitoring Coca-Cola’s murky interests in the coffee business for some time now. The most obvious example being their patent filings in recent years, which have lead to — among other things — their launch of Far Coast coffee pod and machine systems for food service retailers. [...]