Coffee and Tea Manufacturers NAICS 311920

Apr 20, 2026 - Functional Teas

• Tea manufacturers face increasing regulatory and quality risks as demand for functional and wellness teas grows, Quality Assurance and Food Safety Magazine reports. Caraway Tea Company warns that many products with supplement-like ingredients are not produced in certified supplement facilities, creating compliance issues with FDA labeling and manufacturing standards. For tea manufacturers, this raises several challenges. Non-certified production can lead to inconsistent dosing, weak quality control, and lack of traceability, increasing the risk of regulatory scrutiny and potential reputational damage. Brands may also be unable to legally use Supplement Facts labels, limiting marketing claims. The shift toward functional teas means manufacturers must invest in supplement-grade production capabilities, including validated processes, third-party certifications, and stricter quality systems. While this increases costs, it is becoming essential for maintaining credibility and accessing the fast-growing wellness segment. Functional teas are those designed to provide specific health or wellness benefits beyond basic hydration.
• Brazilian coffee farmers increasingly are shifting from arabica to robusta coffee beans due to climate change, rising temperatures, and volatile weather that make arabica harder and more expensive to grow, Fresh Cup reported in December. Brazil is the world’s largest arabica grower and while arabica continues to dominate, robusta production has increased by 81% over the past decade. In just the last growing season, robusta production jumped nearly 22% compared to the previous harvest. As robusta production expands, its quality is improving, creating opportunities for manufacturers to introduce new flavor profiles and lower‑cost blends. The shift from arabica to robusta likely means higher arabica prices and tighter supply, which could pressure manufacturers’ margins. Coffee manufacturers could also meet resistance from consumers accustomed to arabica coffee and who may associate robusta beans with lower‑grade coffee.

• Even though President Trump lifted the steep import tariff on Brazilian coffee in November, coffee prices are expected to remain high, creating ongoing cost pressure for coffee manufacturers, Fresh Cup reports. While arabica and robusta futures briefly fell after the tariff cuts, underlying global factors, such as poor harvests, climate volatility, and supply chain instability, continue to keep prices elevated. That’s bad news for US coffee manufacturers, which can’t count on meaningful relief on bean costs in the near term. Persistently high wholesale prices will continue to squeeze margins, especially for those who rely on specialty arabica beans. Unfortunately for coffee lovers, Trump's tariff removal offered only symbolic relief, while real-world costs for manufacturers remain stubbornly high.
• Producer prices for coffee and tea manufacturers are rising by double-digits, driven by high prices for coffee beans and tea leaves due to crop failures in key growing areas and rising labor costs. The producer price index for coffee and tea manufacturers, which measures prices producers receive for their products, jumped 23.8% in February compared to a year ago, after climbing 13.1% in the previous February-versus-February annual comparison, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. At the retail level, coffee prices rose 18.4% year over year and 1.7% versus January, per the Labor Department’s Consumer Price Index February 2026 report. Employment by makers of coffee, tea, and other food products grew 0.9% YoY in January, while average wages at food manufacturers rose 1.5% YoY in February to $24.17 per hour, easing from their peak late last year, BLS data show.