Coffee prices are increasing—owners of two local coffee shops shared with KSBY News how the increase affects their business.
“As with everything, coffee has gone up,” said Aja Davis, Morro Bay Coffee Company owner.
Davis says coffee prices have increased since the start of the pandemic.
“From me selling in bulk—it went from $15 and now I sell it for $20 a pound,” Davis said.
According to a recent report from Toast, the point-of-sale management system, the current national average for a cup of coffee is $3.08. For lattes, it is $5.46. In California, prices are a little higher with a cup of coffee at $3.88 and lattes at $5.84.
“You hear that a lot from people coming out of state,” said Tony Carignan, Daisy’s Organic Coffee & Tea owner. "They immediately acknowledge our prices here in California. It’s definitely a shock for people coming from out of state."
Davis says she increased her prices earlier this year due to the growing costs.
“I have increased everything,” Davis said. "My whole menu has been increased by a dollar.
Coffee shortages related to drier than normal conditions in some of the world’s largest coffee-producing countries like Vietnam and Brazil tackled with inflation are said to be contributing factors to the increase.
The owner of Daisy’s Organic Coffee & Tea is seeing the same trends.
“We recently had to raise our prices slightly,” Carignan said. "We try to keep up with the competition locally here. Prices have been going up and the customers kind of acknowledge it a little bit but I try not to raise it too high."
Despite increasing prices, both owners say locals continue to show their support.
“When I bought this shop, I had never seen so much support from the community in my whole entire life,” Davis said.
“They become a part of our families—a lot of the locals here. They’re the backbone of our business,” Carignan said.
According to the finance site, GOBankingRates, the price for a cup of coffee 10 years ago was $2.70 compared to today’s average of $3.08.
