Locking in containers

[topher]

Who is watching the market? I had a buddy try and lock me in back in December. Everyone was worried the price was climbing quickly. A few weeks later and we are $.30 lower. Glad I waited. Anyone have a prediction on when we will see that ever so scary "10" year jump? I was lucky the last jump and locked in at $1.17. The market jumped to over $3! That year we locked in on about 20 containers...not looking forward to another spike!

 

[topher]

Looking back to that scary time in coffee....when it jumped a majority of the roasters switched from lb bags to 12 oz. They left the price the same to make up the difference in price. Then when the market came down they left it as is. What happens next time?? Do people start selling 1/2 lbs again?

 

[Musicphan]

I noticed a few local roasters going to 10oz bags.. hate it. So much packaging waste but people seem to like the price point.

 

[wstsider]

I’m lost in this subject and wanna be schooled

 

[PinkRose]

Who is watching the market? I had a buddy try and lock me in back in December. Everyone was worried the price was climbing quickly. A few weeks later and we are $.30 lower. Glad I waited. Anyone have a prediction on when we will see that ever so scary "10" year jump? I was lucky the last jump and locked in at $1.17. The market jumped to over $3! That year we locked in on about 20 containers...not looking forward to another spike!

Topher,

It sounds like ordering coffee beans is like investing in the stock market.

When you "lock in" the price of a container, is it for a certain number of containers, or is it for whatever quantity you buy for a certain length of time?

How much coffee do you buy? Since a container can hold about 21 tons of coffee in bulk or 18 tons in bags, it sounds like the phrase, "You must go through a ton of coffee" really applies to you_!!

 

[wstsider]

It sounds like ordering coffee beans is like investing in the stock market.

When you "lock in" the price of a container, is it for a certain number of containers, or is it for whatever quantity you buy for a certain length of time?

How much coffee do you buy? Since a container can hold about 21 tons of coffee in bulk or 18 tons in bags, it sounds like the phrase, "You must go through a ton of coffee" really applies to you_!!

Nope it doesn’t thanks for that I’m just a small time coffee drinker/enthusiast

 

[PinkRose]

Who is watching the market? I had a buddy try and lock me in back in December. Everyone was worried the price was climbing quickly. A few weeks later and we are $.30 lower. Glad I waited. Anyone have a prediction on when we will see that ever so scary "10" year jump? I was lucky the last jump and locked in at $1.17. The market jumped to over $3! That year we locked in on about 20 containers...not looking forward to another spike!

When was the last "10 year jump" ??? Is it getting close to 10 years already? It doesn't seem like it was all that long ago, but time is flying by.

If roasters start selling 1/2 lb. bags, maybe they'll also switch back to using the 16 ounce bags for those who want a full pound of coffee. The price will go up, no matter how you look at it.

I hope it doesn't happen.

 

[expat]

Here in Ireland and most of the rest of Europe they (factory roasters) went from 250g to 200g and reformulated their blends adding a lot of Robusta. When prices went down the factory roasters didn't change a thing, just pocketed the extra profits.

 

[expat]

Topher, I'm not a power buyer like you, I wouldn't even know what to do with a container of coffee. I'm a pallet or two or three at a time guy. I just had organic Robusta at €3.70/kg and buying today it has jumped to €4.07/kg. Colombian and Sumatra have gone up too. Maybe things are starting to move?

 

[wmark]

The Brazilian farmer I deal with told me that this year is a bumper crop and will keep prices down. Next year is suppose to be a lower yield year.

 

[MntnMan62]

I too don't like the sellers who only offer 12 oz. bags. I'm in the US and have been searching among the local roasters near me for one that I can count as my go to source for roasted whole beans. I had found one that has good coffee where I knew that the beans had only been roasted about a week before. But all their bags are 12 oz. I settled on one of their beans, a medium to light roast that seems to be their most popular. What I really liked is that instead of only selling the 12 oz. bags, they would fill your coffee canister with a full pound for the same price. But when I went back to try a different roast, they said they don't have that one in anything other than 12 oz. bags. That sent me on a search for another roaster. And I found another one with less variety but with really quality beans and can buy the beans knowing they've been roasted no more than 3 days prior to buying them. And they sell their coffee in one pound bags. So, the other roaster lost my business because they are to cheap to offer one pound bags or fill my cannister with the roast of my choice. Their loss. My gain.

 

[Musicphan]

I too don't like the sellers who only offer 12 oz. bags. I'm in the US and have been searching among the local roasters near me for one that I can count as my go to source for roasted whole beans. I had found one that has good coffee where I knew that the beans had only been roasted about a week before. But all their bags are 12 oz. I settled on one of their beans, a medium to light roast that seems to be their most popular. What I really liked is that instead of only selling the 12 oz. bags, they would fill your coffee canister with a full pound for the same price. But when I went back to try a different roast, they said they don't have that one in anything other than 12 oz. bags. That sent me on a search for another roaster. And I found another one with less variety but with really quality beans and can buy the beans knowing they've been roasted no more than 3 days prior to buying them. And they sell their coffee in one pound bags. So, the other roaster lost my business because they are to cheap to offer one pound bags or fill my cannister with the roast of my choice. Their loss. My gain.

One of the challenges as a roaster that does mail order is the cost of shipping. My 12oz bags w/packaging/box / label equals about 14.5 oz.. anything under an lb ship for around $5 (give or take by region). Once you go above that it has to go Priority mail and is usually $8-9. And for $8-9 its the same price to send 5 lbs... With all that being said that's why most roasters keep it at 12oz. The trend started in the grocery store to keep a price point but modern specialty roasters are somewhat limited by shipping options. I offer my customer 12oz and 2lb bags to get over the postage costs... and don't get me started on the conversation about "amazon shipping is free"..

 

[MntnMan62]

One of the challenges as a roaster that does mail order is the cost of shipping. My 12oz bags w/packaging/box / label equals about 14.5 oz.. anything under an lb ship for around $5 (give or take by region). Once you go above that it has to go Priority mail and is usually $8-9. And for $8-9 its the same price to send 5 lbs... With all that being said that's why most roasters keep it at 12oz. The trend started in the grocery store to keep a price point but modern specialty roasters are somewhat limited by shipping options. I offer my customer 12oz and 2lb bags to get over the postage costs... and don't get me started on the conversation about "amazon shipping is free"..

Good information. Obviously I didn't even give the shipping issues any thought. So I feel your pain.