Whole beans gain ground in the land of fine-grind coffee

Swedes are buying more and more whole coffee beans. In the last year, the sales have increased with 20 per cent. An increased interest for food and drinks is behind the upswing.

Swedes love their coffee. We drink an average of 3.5 cups per day or 150 litres per year. In the last years, the interest for exploring new flavours and methods of preparation has explosively increased in finding the perfect cup of coffee.

- We are more concerned that what we eat and drink should taste good. I think that is one of the things why we see that more people choose whole beans. The advantage is that they stay fresh longer, the coffee is always freshly ground and you can decide your own grinding degree, says Leif Sjöblom, marketing manager at Löfbergs Lila.

- With our feet deeply rooted in the unique Swedish coffee culture, we are working hard with covering what is up and coming when it comes to our drinking habits.

1.4 coffee machines per household - and more coffee grinders
Brewing freshly ground coffee is an old custom that has gotten a revival as more poeple are trying different methods of preparation. The entry of latte and espresso has involved smart capsule machines and milk skimmers in our homes, but also more coffee grinders and a greater interest in quality.

Today, there is an average of 1.4 coffee machines in Swedish households, where 72 per cent of them are filter brewers. The fine-grind coffee is still unthreatened and represents 87 per cent of all the coffee we purchase. More and more people are choosing to grind their coffee at home. In every ten homes, there is a coffee grinder.

- In Sweden, we have a long tradition of fine-grind coffee. The trend with latte and espresso has made the interest for coffee increase and also infect the fine-grind coffee where we now have higher demands on both taste and origin, says Leif Sjöblom.

Distribution of coffee machines in Swedish households

• Filter brewers: 72 %
• Percolator: 25 %
• Presso brewer: 12 %
• Coffee grinder: 12 %
• Manual espresso machine: 7 %
• Pods/Pads machine: 4 %
• Fully automatic espresso machine: 3 %
• Mocca brewer: 2 %

*GfK's household panel, 3.000 Swedish households in June 2011

For more information:
Leif Sjöblom, Marketing Manager, Löfbergs Lila, +46 (0) 54-14 01 42