QUESTION: Why is Hawaiian coffee so expensive? I really enjoy it, but can’t afford to keep buying those tiny bags of beans for big bucks! — Warner F
ANSWER: Coffee grown in the Hawaiian islands and Kona coffee in particular, is some of the most expensive coffee that you can find on the market. But why such high prices? Well, the answer is multilayered, and has to do with many factors, including location, single origin vs. blend coffee, organic coffee beans, exclusive origin, high labor costs, and availability.
Some Kona coffee can go for as much as $100 per pound, which may sound ridiculous until you learn about the labor costs and exclusivity of the beans that are going for such high rates. Even then, you might still question why someone would pay that much for coffee. That is, until you taste it. The beans are so good that people don’t mind paying exorbitant prices, which is why the demand for high grade kona coffee is so high despite the incredibly high prices.
Kona blends are usually inexpensive because they are typically made up of no more than 10 percent Kona coffee, while the rest of the blends are made of cheap coffee beans to offset the price of the Kona beans that were used in the blend. Kona beans sold in non-blended forms are amongst the most expensive coffees in the world and are likely the most expensive coffee in the world by region.
Kona coffee is not just coffee from Hawaii, but specifically coffee that comes from the island of Kona. Just to make it even more exclusive, not all of the coffee beans grown on the Kona island can make the cut either. The farm where the coffee beans are grown must also be from the area on the island known as the Kona Coffee Belt, which is only 30 square miles. In this tiny region, conditions are perfect for the perfect crop of coffee beans. Anything from outside this small region can only be called hawaiian coffee, not Kona coffee, and is most likely not going to be nearly as good as what is grown in the Kona Coffee Belt.
The land inside this 30 square mile belt is perfect for growing coffee but incredibly hard to cultivate, as the ground is rocky and the slopes are steep, so everything has to be done by hand. The cost of labor gets pretty high in this area as well, as Hawaii is not a cheap place to live, meaning coffee farmers have to pay workers up to 20 times as much for their services as they would in other areas where producing coffee is comparably cheap. If Kona coffee wasn’t such a hot item on the market, the cost of production would force growers out of the market quickly, but coffee from this region is so highly coveted that it justifies the cost of the beans.
There is still a lot of variation in price amongst the 100 percent Kona coffee options on the market. This is due to the regional grading system that all Kona coffees must go through in order to be labeled Kona coffee. First, just putting your coffee through the grading system costs money, raising the price of the beans for a grade based on size and quality. Then, based on the grade the beans get, they could earn a higher or lower cost on the market. That’s why you can find 100 percent Kona beans at $20 or $30 per pound while other Kona beans are going for around $100 per pound.
The highest grade coffee beans can get on the Kona coffee scale is Extra Fancy. After the top tier, beans can be graded Fancy, Number 1, Peaberry, and Prime, prime being the lowest grade and fancy being the highest grade after the Extra Fancy beans. Considering the high costs of Kona coffee beans, smart buyers should follow these three rules when purchasing Kona coffee:
- First, always buy your Kona beans in small batches, so that the beans stay fresh while you are using them. If you buy in bulk, chances are, your beans will grow stale before you are done drinking through your batch. Smaller batches lower this risk.
- Second, always buy whole beans and grind them yourself at home. If you don’t have a coffee grinder, it’s a small investment to get a nice one, and if you can afford Kona coffee beans, you can surely fork up the cash for a small grinder.
- Third, you should always select the type of roast that is best suited for your favorite type of brewing. If you like regular coffee, you should pick a roast that is best for coffee. If you like espresso better, you should pick a roast that is well-suited to espresso brewing.
Why Kona Coffee Is So Expensive
Hawaiian coffee is a hot commodity, but only Kona coffee is completely exclusive when it comes to the origins authenticity. No other coffee grown outside of the Kona belt can claim to be Kona coffee. The Kona coffee belt is the perfect location for coffee production. It gets lots of sunshine and a steady 70 degrees Fahrenheit temperature. There is plenty of lush Hawiiaan foliage in the area to protect the plants from excess sunlight. The Kona belt is 3000 feet above sea level, which is the perfect altitude for growing beans with a mild taste. The belt also gets the perfect amount of rain to balance the sunlight and a rich volcanic soil with excellent drainage.
Besides the exclusive origin of Kona coffee, the other factors that contribute to its high prices include the high labor cost of farming coffee beans on the slopes of the hawaiian volcanoes in the Kona coffee belt, and the lack of availability of Kona coffee beans due to the incredibly high demand. Farmers in the region simply cannot keep up with how much the rest of the world loves their coffee.
The high price tag on Kona coffee only seems to make people want it more. But do yourself a favor, and shop around before buying your Kona coffee. Avoid blends where you only get 10 percent Kona beans and be sure to buy your Kona coffee from a reputable source. When coffee tastes this good, its value is priceless.
See our complete list of Hawaiian coffee brands and browse it for some of the best Hawaiian coffee you’ll ever taste.
Learn More About Hawaiian and Kona Coffees
https://buddhascup.com/blogs/kona-coffee-blog/why-is-kona-coffee-so-expensive
https://www.konamountaincoffee.com/blogs/news/why-is-kona-coffee-so-expensive
https://www.royalkonacoffee.com/kona-coffee-expensive/