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Starbucks, as part of its venture with Tata, opened its first Indian stores in October and now has
seven outlets in Mumbai and New Delhi.
Lavazza, which sells coffee under its brand to other retailers, recently opened a coffee shop in
Bangalore. Attilio Capuano, the company's Asia and Pacific director, says opening stores in
India's main cities is part of as strategy to strengthen its brand in the country.
"Young people are turning to places like Starbucks because they want a trendy place to socialize
and can take their iPhones and connect to the free Wi-Fi," says Roberio Oliveira Silva, head of
the London-based International Coffee Organization. "Coffee culture has taken India by storm
and it will continue to do so because of higher incomes and greater urbanization."
Demand for instant coffee also is growing here. Nestl set up demonstration farms in South India
last year to help farmers improve productivity to help meet demand for the company's instant
Nescaf products across the country.
India's large population means that even a small increase in coffee consumption by individuals
can affect global supply and demand for the commodity. India's status as the world's fourthlargest exporter of robusta beansafter Vietnam, Brazil and Indonesiacould be changed by
domestic demand.
"As more production is consumed domestically, it leaves less for exports, supporting
international prices," says Keith Flury, a soft-commodity analyst at Rabobank in London.
India is expected to produce around 315,500 metric tons of coffee during the 2012-13 crop year,
according to the state-run Indian Coffee Board. Around 70% of production is the robusta type of
beans, the more bitter and cheaper variety than arabica. Robusta is mainly cultivated in the
southern Indian states of Karnataka and Kerala. Shipments of Indian coffee fell about 9% last
year to 310,021 tons, according to the coffee board.
Anil Bhandari, president of the India Coffee Trust trade group, says India could stop exporting
most coffee in the next five to 10 years because of rising domestic use. "Coffee consumption in
India started around the coffee-producing areas,but now things are changing as more and more
Indian coffees are consumed domestically." He says India also will become an importer of
Arabica beans.
"The market is already suffering from a lack of Indian coffee beans, so if more is consumed
domestically, high-end coffee will suffer," says Rachel Hamburger, chief executive of Portofino
Coffee Ltd., a roaster which buys Indian beans.
Indian coffee beans are favored by high-end roasters over beans from countries such as Vietnam
because they bring a unique taste to coffee blends.
The likelihood of increased production meeting rising domestic demand and sustaining exports is
unlikely, says Ramesh Rajah, president of India's Coffee Exporters Association, citing the high
cost of cultivating plantations. He estimates that costs for growers, including fertilizer, fuel and
labor, have risen about 40% in the past two years. "For two decades, the coffee board has wanted
to increase production in nontraditional areas. But, it has not been increased," he says.
Rumman Ahmed in Bangalore, India, contributed to this article.
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