U.S. Demand For Coffee At A Record High Thanks To Millennials

I don’t know what you picture when you heard the word “millennial,” but me, I just imagine a crowd of companies and brands trailing behind someone, begging them to buy whatever it is they’re selling. One product that doesn’t need to chase the younger set is coffee, demand for which is expected to reach a record high in this country.

Americans are getting a taste for coffee at an earlier age, and not only that, young adults are drinking enough of the stuff on daily basis to make up for older people who have may have cut back, Bloomberg reports.

Not only is the 19- to 34-year-old set swilling coffee about 44% of the coffee consumed in the U.S., according to researcher Datassential, they’re seeking out caffeine earlier in life: adults born after 1995 started drinking coffee at 14.7 years old, while those born closer to 1982 first sipped the stuff around 17.1 years old, the group said.

While demand is going up, supply is tightening amid drought in Brazil, sending prices for arabica to their highest point since February 2015 last week.

Demand “has been running well above expectations, thereby tightening coffee markets significantly,” Harish Sundaresh, a portfolio manager and commodities analyst, told Bloomberg.

Coffee-Loving Millennials Push Demand to a Record [Bloomberg]