VIETNAM
The Vietnamese coffee industry is getting into the soluble powder business.
Intimex Group, the country’s Robusta coffee has been exported for instant coffee processing for decades but now the nation’s largest supplier intends to make its own powder early this year, according to a Bloomberg News report.
Instant coffee is rapidly growing in popularity across Asia and in making its own solubles, Vietnam can help meet the demand without facing significant swings in international raw coffee prices.
“We don’t want to miss a chance to jump on the bandwagon of instant coffee,” Do Ha Nam, chairman of Intimex Group, said in the Bloomberg report. Intimex exports almost a third of all Vietnam’s Robusta crop. “It brings more profit and less risk as it means we don’t have to rely on the price set by the London market.”
A recent Euromonitor International report indicated the Asian instant coffee market will grow nearly 12% by 2024 with India leading the demand. International prices for raw beans, however, have been declining. Robusta futures on the London exchange dropped 11% in 2019.
Intimex hopes to become Vietnam’s top supplier of instant coffee in the next five years, passing Nestlè, according to Bloomberg. To do so, Intimex will need to expand its production 20,000 tons – five times its current output.