Share of Coffee with a Sustainable Label, Per Product Group, in the Assortments of Belgian Supermarkets, November 2011
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1 Author: Facts Figures Future, http://www.3xf.nl Managing Editor: Carl Michiels © BTC, Belgian Development Agency, 2011. All rights reserved. The content of this publication may be reproduced after permission has been obtained from BTC and provided that the source is acknowledged. This publication of the Trade for Development Centre does not necessarily represent the views of BTC. Photo courtesy: © iStockphoto/Mediaphotos Cover : Coffee beans by Tonx 2 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 4 Objective ......................................................................................................... 4 Definitions ....................................................................................................... 4 Product classification ...................................................................................... 4 Research methodology ................................................................................... 4 1. Coffee in Belgium ..................................................................................... 5 1.1 Consumption ............................................................................................. 5 1.2 Imports ...................................................................................................... 5 1.3 Supplying markets .................................................................................... 5 1.4 Exports ...................................................................................................... 5 1.5 Trends ....................................................................................................... 5 2. Coffee in Belgian supermarkets .............................................................. 6 2.1 Leading coffee roasters ............................................................................ 6 2.2 Leading brands ......................................................................................... 6 2.3 Sustainable coffee .................................................................................... 6 2.4 Market Shares of major supermarkets in Belgium ………………………...7 2.5 Sustainable coffee in Belgian supermarkets ............................................ 7 2.5.1 Share of sustainable coffee products per supermarket ....................... 10 2.5.2 Share of sustainable private label coffee products per supermarket .. 10 2.6 Future expectations ................................................................................ 11 3. Conclusion .............................................................................................. 13 3 Objective Product classification This study aims to give an overview of the current For statistical purposes, the following HS codes have and future availability of sustainable coffee in the as- been included in the research: sortments of major Belgian supermarkets. HS code Definition Definitions 090111 Coffee (excluding roasted and decaffeinated) Coffee has been divided into four product groups: 090112 Decaffeinated coffee (excluding roasted) Ground coffee 090121 Roasted coffee (excluding decaffeinated) The product group ground coffee includes all packag- es of ground coffee ranging from 250 to 1,500 grams. 090122 Roasted, decaffeinated coffee The most common packages offered in Belgian su- 210111 Extracts, essences and concentrates, of coffee permarkets are those of 250 and 500 grams. Coffee pads and cups The product group coffee pads and cups includes These HS codes have been used to calculate interna- coffee pads packages ranging from 12 to 36 pads tional trade statistics. For this purpose, ITC Trade Map and coffee cups packages ranging from 8 to 16 cups. figures have been used. However, the figures should The most common packages in Belgian supermar- be interpreted carefully and should only be used as an kets are packages of 18 and 36 pads and packages indication of the market and its developments. of 10 and 16 cups. Research Methodology Instant coffee Instant coffee includes all jars of instant coffee rang- A major part of the research consisted of store visits to ing from 50 gram to 400 grams. Sachets of instant 1 or 2 branches of the twelve major Belgian supermar- coffee have not been included. The most common ket chains, conducted in the period 22-24 November sizes of instant coffee in Belgian supermarkets are 2011. those of 100 and 200 grams. During these store visits, the availability of coffee (per Coffee beans product group) with a sustainable label in the assort- The product group coffee beans includes all packag- ment of each supermarket was calculated by counting es of coffee beans ranging from 250 grams to 2500 how many of the total variety of coffee products within grams, of which packages of 250 and 500 grams are a product group carried a sustainable label. All super- the most common in Belgian supermarkets. market chains have received the results of the store Each brand, package size and type of coffee within visits. The majority of the supermarkets have respond- these product groups and size ranges were counted ed to the results and confirmed them. separately (including different sizes and types of the same brand). Furthermore, this report is the result of: Desk research. Sustainable The definition of ‘sustainable’ can be interpreted very Primary research such as: broadly. In this study, the term ‘sustainable coffee’ Interviews with major Belgian supermarkets. refers to coffee that carries a sustainable label such Interviews with certification bodies, such as UTZ, as UTZ, Rainforest Alliance, Max Havelaar/Fairtrade Rainforest Alliance and Max Havelaar/Fairtrade. or bio labels such as EU organic or Agriculture Bi- ologique. Interviews with Belgian coffee roasters. 4 1.1. Consumption 1.3. Supplying markets Belgium is a medium-sized coffee consumer in the Brazil was the leading coffee supplier to Belgium in European Union. Coffee consumption can be divided 2010. Other non-European coffee suppliers to Belgium into two segments: were Honduras, Peru, Vietnam, Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico, Ethiopia, Uganda, Nicaragua and Kenya. For At-home. Around 70% of coffee consumption in 1 more information refer to Figure I. Belgium takes place at home . The at-home mar- ket is becoming increasingly diverse as a result of Figure I Supplying markets of coffee to Belgium, new, innovative coffee consumption methods such 2010, in % as coffee pads and cups. Out-of-home. Around 30% of coffee in Belgium is consumed out of home2, for example at work, in coffee shops, in restaurants, at public institutions or at petrol stations. Total Belgian coffee consumption represented 52.8 thousand tonnes in 2010, an increase of 0.5% com- pared to 2009. Belgian per capita coffee consump- tion was 4.87 kilo in 20103. 1.2. Imports Source: ITC Trade Map (2011) Belgium is the sixth largest coffee importer in the world and the fourth largest in the EU, behind Ger- many, France and Italy, but ahead of the UK and 1.4 Exports Spain4. Not only has Belgium a rather large coffee roasting industry, but the port of Antwerp is also one Belgium holds an important trading position. In 2010, of the main ports in Europe in terms of transhipment Belgium exported 278 thousand tonnes of coffee. The facilities. Netherlands (46%), France (33%) and Germany (11%) were the most important export destinations6. In 2010, Belgian coffee imports had a value of around €882 million, or 341 thousand tonnes in vol- ume. For more information refer to Table I. 1.5 Trends Table I : World coffee imports, per country, The coffee culture in Belgium is shifting from ground 2007-2010, in € million coffee to single-serve methods such as coffee pads Country Import Import Import Import and cups. The ease-of-use of these products and the value value value value wide variety of flavours have contributed to an increase 2007 2008 2009 2010 in their popularity. USA 2,844 3,088 3,003 3,814 A typical coffee blend in Belgium consists of 75% of Germany 2,189 2,446 2,212 2,846 Arabica coffee and 25% of Robusta coffee. However, France 925 1,048 1,134 1,379 demand for high-quality coffee blends, single-origin, certified organic and sustainably produced and fla- Japan 866 950 917 1,149 7 voured coffee is increasing . Italy 831 977 916 1,012 Sustainability labels, such as UTZ, Rainforest Alliance, Belgium 503 870 754 882 Max Havelaar/Fairtrade and bio labels, are gaining Canada 541 597 627 804 importance in Belgium. The UK 522 593 614 743 Spain 502 619 585 722 Russia 431 456 422 568 Source: ITC Trade Map (2011) Coffee imports from developing countries accounted for more than 76% of total Belgian coffee imports. Total Belgian coffee imports in- creased by more than 20% on average per year between 2007 and 2010. Imports from develop- ing countries increased even more during the same period, by an average of 27% per year5. 5 The largest coffee roasters on the Belgian market are Global sustainable coffee sales increased by more Douwe Egberts (DE - http://www.douwe-egberts.be) than 433% between 2004 and 2009. Around 8.0% of and Kraft (http://www.kraftfoods.be). Belgium has worldwide coffee sales carried a sustainable label in some small national roasters as well, for example: 2010, compared to 6.0% in 2008 and only 1.0% in 20028. The market for certified coffee in Belgium was Beyers - http://www.beyerskoffie.be. estimated to lie around 10% in 20099. MIKO - http://www.miko.eu. Rombouts - http://www.rombouts.com. However, the situation in the coffee assortments of