Top Five Coffee Packaging Trends

Coffees offer us a way to look at our relationship to the larger world, build connections with others that define our mission, vision and values. According to the International Coffee Organization (ICO), there are three characteristics that affect consumer attitudes towards coffee: health effect, drinking pleasure, and sustainability of production.

Consumers demand a high-quality product, thus moving the market towards specialization and transparency. Shouldn’t the coffee packaging keep up with this move away from a mass produced product? 

Here are five trends you need to know:

1. The Rise of Specialty Coffee

In the last few years, consumer demand for specialty coffee has been on the rise. This growing market results from increasing numbers of artisan roasters and independent coffee shops which invest in specialty coffee in order to provide the best, most unique flavors to consumers. A recent Allegra Strategies report claims the specialty coffee market is expected to see a 100% increase by 2020.

2. Increased Demand

Millennials have directly caused an increased demand in the coffee market. According to the Specialty Coffee Association of America, 35% of 18-24 year olds in the United States reported that they drink specialty coffee every day. With the younger generation driving the demand for specialty coffee, this trend only shows signs of increasing. Additionally, the International Coffee Organization reports that the export of arabica coffee beans increased from 68.97 million bags to 70.24 million bags last year.

3. Marketing Your Mission

With increased demand, the coffee market is becoming very crowded. It can be difficult to make your brand stand out. It is crucial that packaging reflects your brand’s mission and values!

4. Sustainability

The coffee industry has a complex supply chain and for many coffee retailers, particularly organic and fair-trade coffee roasters, sustainable sourcing is crucial at every step. Finding truly eco-friendly packaging which aligns with a sustainable brand promise has long been a challenge for many coffee retailers.

Coffee consumers are more conscious than ever about the effect their purchases have on the environment and reducing waste will help your brand to stand out.

It is also important to ensure that every element of your packaging is compostable, otherwise you run the risk of contaminating the composting process. Many brands make the effort to use compostable bags, forgetting that the zipper closure, valve, and label must also be compostable. Our 100% compostable coffee bag paired with our compostable labels will ensure an entirely compostable, zero waste, flexible packaging solution.

5. Customization

Following the thriving coffee market, coffee retailers have been improving both the quality of their product and their packaging to give sales and brand recognition a boost. Companies have been investing in higher quality packaging design and construction. After all, a lot of time and consideration has been put into how to create the best specialty coffee, shouldn’t that also be reflected in the packaging?

This week kicks off two of the largest events around coffee and tea. The Coffee Symposium and Expo are being held in Boston on April 10th - 14th.

Elevate Packaging and Pure Labels are proud to be part of the coffee conversation in booth #335.