Coffee and Tea Manufacturers NAICS 311920

Oct 20, 2025 - Soaring Demand & Prices for Matcha

• Matcha prices are soaring due to rising global demand and tariffs on US imports, US News reports. Demand for the powdered tea has skyrocketed around the world, fueled by interest in its health benefits and viral images of bright green matcha lattes on social media, according to USN. Bad weather in Japan, one of the largest suppliers of matcha to the US, reduced this year’s harvest, while the 15% tariff on imports from Japan imposed by the Trump administration is further fueling already high prices caused by shortages. Matcha prices tripled at some Japanese tea auctions after this year’s spring harvest was hit by hot temperatures and US tariffs took effect. Meanwhile, US retail sales of matcha, up 86% from three years ago according to market research firm Nielsen IQ, are straining supplies causing some importers to ration demand.
• Brazil, which supplies about a third of US coffee, faces a 50% tariff on goods it exports to the US. The steep tariff took effect on August 6 despite efforts by US coffee companies, industry associations, roasters, and Brazilian trade representatives to secure an exemption for coffee imports. Coffee manufacturers, which were already facing high prices for beans due to adverse weather conditions in producer countries that have resulted in supply shortages, are bracing for impact. In Michigan, James Defrees, of 517 Coffee Company, said his store’s core blends come from Brazil. When a 10% import tariff on coffee was imposed in April, it added 40 cents per pound to his imports. Now that tariffs have soared to 50%, he fears a nationwide shortage, Defrees told WLNS. The US imports about 24 million 60-kilogram bags of coffee annually, with Brazil accounting for 34% of that volume.

• A new study from researchers at Tufts University suggests that drinking coffee carries life-lengthening health benefits, but only if you pass on the cream and sugar, Healthline reports. Coffee is rich in antioxidants, compounds that protect against oxidative stress in your body caused by damaging free radicals that are believed to be associated with aging. Coffee is one of the biggest sources of antioxidants in the Western diet — outranking both fruits and vegetables combined. That’s because two-thirds of Americans drink coffee daily, according to the National Coffee Association, which means coffee contributes more to people’s antioxidant intake on average. Also, controlled studies examining the effects of caffeine on the brain have demonstrated it can temporarily improve mood, reaction time, memory, vigilance, and general brain function, another plus for coffee drinkers. Lastly, coffee has been repeatedly associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes.
• Producer prices for coffee and tea manufacturers are soaring, driven by high prices for coffee beans and tea leaves due to poor harvests and labor shortages in key growing areas and tariffs on US imports. The producer price index (PPI) for coffee and tea manufacturers, which measures prices producers receive for their products, jumped 30% in August compared to a year ago after rising a more modest 5.6% in the previous August-versus-August annual comparison, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. At the retail level, coffee prices were up 21% year over year in August, per the BLS. Employment by makers of coffee, tea, and other food products dipped 1% YoY in July, while average wages at food manufacturers rose 2% YoY in August to $23.98 per hour, down $0.15 from their high in January, BLS data show.