The recently held Thai Coffee Festival 2024 in Bangkok has featured more than 300 booths and a variety of creative activities and professional lectures, attracting a large number of exhibitors and visitors. According to the latest data, the Thai coffee market is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 8.55% from 2021 to 2023, with the market value reaching 34.5 billion baht in 2023 (1 US dollar is equivalent to 33 baht), an increase of 7.34% per year.
Walking on the streets of major cities in Thailand, you will find uniquely decorated coffee shops with a variety of beverages. To facilitate consumers to enjoy coffee anytime, anywhere, many business districts and communities in Bangkok have set up self-service coffee vending machines. According to statistics, the per capita consumption of coffee in Thailand is as high as 340 cups per year. In the Thai coffee market, instant coffee accounts for about 84% of the market share, while fresh coffee accounts for about 16%.
Phu Phong, Director of the Office of Trade Policy and Strategy, Ministry of Commerce, believes that the growth of the coffee market is related to the increasing demand for coffee drinks and the increasing pursuit of a convenient lifestyle. Meanwhile, Thailand’s hot climate also makes iced coffee and chilled instant coffee popular among consumers.
The mountainous areas of northern and southern Thailand are the country’s main coffee bean producing areas. Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Lampang and other areas in the North mostly grow Arabica coffee beans, known for their delicate flavors. Chumphon, Surat Thani and other areas in the South mostly grow Robusta coffee beans, which have a stronger flavor. Data shows that Thailand’s coffee bean production in 2023 is expected to be around 16,600 tons, with Arabica and Robusta beans accounting for almost half.
Since 2021, Thailand’s coffee exports have continued to grow. In 2023, Thailand’s coffee exports are expected to be worth US$126 million, up 15.6% year-on-year. In terms of imports, Thailand’s coffee has been on an upward trend since 2019, with coffee imports worth US$3.38 billion in 2023, up 12.9% year-on-year.
Amazon Coffee is one of the largest coffee brands in Thailand, owned and operated by the National Petroleum and Retail Business Group of Thailand. And with over 4,000 stores in Thailand, in January this year, the company announced that it would set up a coffee knowledge center in Lampang Province, Thailand, with a 240-acre Amazon garden as an “open-air organic farm” and a coffee cultivation research and development center, explaining the skills of growing high-quality coffee. Coffee to ensure a supply of Amazon coffee shops by the end of 2023. Inthanee, another major coffee brand in Thailand, aims to open 2,500 stores nationwide in the next five years. The brand’s coffee cups will feature the words “100% plant-derived” and their coffee. The cups are made of biodegradable materials that can decompose within 180 days of being discarded.
Some foreign coffee companies are also exploring the Thai market in depth. Nestle (Thailand) Co., Ltd. sells high-yielding coffee seedlings and provides technical training and assistance to Thai coffee farmers through its “Nestle Plan 2030” to diversify production on its farms. Late last year, Starbucks opened 500 stores in Thailand, second only to three Thai brands: Amazon Coffee, Inthani and Putai Coffee.
(Bangkok, October 17)
