The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has said El Niño has officially arrived. It is a natural occurring climatic condition where the sea surface temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific rise. This phenomenon increases overall global temperature affecting rainfall and agriculture.
A story published by Bloomberg on Saturday has highlighted that El Niño will impact the price of coffee, chocolate and ‘indulgent treats.’ The story titled Cost of Your Caffeine and Sugar Fix to Stay High on El Niño notes, “The return of El Niño and prospects of hotter, drier weather in producing countries is now threatening to exacerbate tight supply.” The story reports, "In the UK, retailers are locking instant coffee jars in security cases to prevent theft. In Japan, one beverage giant suspended the sale of Tropicana orange juice because of a shortage. And in Germany, chocolate and biscuit makers complain of soaring sugar and cocoa costs.”
Last week, the story said, the prices of robusta soared to a record high since 2008. The production of robusta bean is expected to fall by 5% in Brazil. The largest producer of robusta is Vietnam and it is seeing low stock of this much-loved bean. Meanwhile in Indonesia, considered to be the world’s second-biggest robusta exporter, ‘output is projected to drop by 20%.’ These factors will likely push up the prices of your daily cup of coffee.
If you like a chocolate cookie or cake to accompany your coffee, it is predicted that you will pay more for those too. The Bloomberg story reports the production of cocoa beans in West Africa is projected to fall in the next season by as much as 8% on adverse weather. It is the world’s biggest cocoa growing region with countries like Ghana famous for producing high quality cocoa beloved by pastry makers.
