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by Jonathan Feuer, President LMZ,
July, 2011
Soluble Coffee: A Growth Industry
Since its creation in the early 20th century, soluble ("instant") coffee has grown and
remained firmly among the most dynamic of all soft beverage sectors. While the primary
advantage of instant coffee is generally acknowledged as ʻconvenienceʼ it can be said
with certainty that 21st century developments in product formulations and packaging
innovation have taken instant coffee to a new qualitative level, as reflected in the
sectorʼs growth over the past decade. It is well established that the soluble coffee
sector in 2010 represented fully one-third of all coffee consumed worldwide.
Soluble Production Emerging In Asia
While green coffee is produced in some 65 countries, soluble coffee is produced at
origin in quantities suitable for export in but one-third as many locations. Brazil has the
most production facilities and export capacity, which at one time had 11 plants
producing spray dried, agglomerated and freeze dried coffees. Colombia has a sizeable
and quite sophisticated soluble coffee industry that is producing many of the highest
quality products currently in the market. In turn, the global landscape is evolving as new
plants have been and are being built in the Asian theatre, with a vibrant industry in India
and emerging production locales such as Vietnam and Malaysia.
The Rising Popularity Of Soluble Coffee
On the retail front, the developed world markets in North America, Europe, the United
Kingdom and the related commonwealth countries remain the worldʼs largest soluble
coffee markets in the grocery channel. The popularity of instant coffee has slackened
somewhat in its traditional markets over the past 20 years, only to be supplanted by
dramatic growth in emerging markets in Asia and Eastern Europe. In 2008, Russia
passed the United States as the largest importer of soluble coffee products worldwide.
Asia has increasingly favored coffee among its many beverage choices, and soluble
coffee-based products in various forms are a major and growing consumer category
throughout the region.
The Future of Soluble
Today we see a significant range of forms and flavor profiles, producer capability and capacity, and of course a wide range in costs. In part, soluble coffee's new-found growth is a direct result of technical developments that have produced a category of instant products fully equivalent in quality to many roast and ground coffees available today. The emergence of certified products such as fair trade, rainforest and organic coffees has also impacted the soluble market favorably.
Coffee-based beverages have continued to grow rapidly in popularity, and soluble coffee is the preferred ingredient in many formulations. Finally, many populous emerging consuming nations in eastern Europe and Asia use some form of soluble coffee as their introduction to coffee drinking. When considering the health of the industry today as compared to even ten years ago, there is a sound and exciting future ahead in new products and opportunities linked to evolving consumer preferences and tastes.
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