TAIPEI, Taiwan – Consumers in Taiwan drank 2.85 billion cups of coffee in 2015, which translates into a daily consumption of 780,000 cups, according to statistics released by cafe chain operator Starbucks Taiwan.
According to the statistics, Taiwan imported 28,541 tons of coffee beans in 2015, up 61 percent from 2011, and the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of Taiwan’s coffee bean imports hit 13 percent during the five- year period.
The data shows that Taiwan consumed about 2.85 billion cups of coffee a year in the past five years, or each consumer in Taiwan drank 122 cups of coffee per year during this period.
Starbucks Taiwan said that the growth in coffee consumption has created about NT$70 billion (US$2.22 billion)-worth of business opportunities a year in the local market.
The coffee chain operator said that more and more local consumers now favor black coffee without cream or milk, with sales of black coffee in its outlets in Taiwan for the first half of this year rising 12 percent from a year earlier.
City Cafe, the coffee sales operator under the 7-Eleven convenience store chain, which is owned by the Taiwanese food conglomerate Uni-President Group, said earlier this year that it has also witnessed an uptrend in black coffee consumption in Taiwan.
The 7-Eleven convenience store chain and Starbucks Taiwan belong to the Uni-President Group.
City Cafe said it expects to sell more than 300 million cups of black coffee this year, accounting for 33 percent of its total coffee sales, which means each consumer will drink about 14 cups of black coffee provided by City Cafe on average per year.
Starbucks Taiwan said that more and more local consumers appear more interested in involving themselves in coffee culture, adding that since the coffee chain operator opened its first Starbucks Reserve outlet in Taiwan in 2013, a total of 6.2 million consumers have visited Starbucks Reserve stores to have a taste of premium coffee beans and drip coffee.
