Sumidagawa Brewing.
Image: Yumi Nakatsugwa

Asahi YOU. US, Ltd has found an innovative way to further the circular economy. The wholly owned subsidiary of Asahi Group Japan, Ltd, was established in January 2022 with a focus on sustainable products and activities, not only within the Asahi Group but also in collaboration with municipalities, universities as well as other business entities. Coffee and tea companies are now benefitting from two of its craft beers, Kuramae Black and Sayama Green, which are using coffee and green tea remnants or by-products that are infused into the beer.

Kuramae Black is a coffee-blended stout beer, named Kuramae after the location of Asahi’s initial product partner, Ennoki coffee roastery. The company hopes Kuramae Black will become popular among the local community and be recognised as a special product of the region. As a coffee roaster, Ennoki conducts test roasts before finalising the roasting profile of each coffee bean. They were concerned that there was nothing to do with the remaining test-roasted beans after cupping, other than discard them. Subsequently, Asahi YOU. US developed the idea of making a craft beer using the test-roasted coffee bean.

Kuramae Black launched in July 2021. It is brewed in Sumidagawa Brewing, which had been experimenting with a coffee-flavoured beer for a long time, and it was aware that stout beer could be the best to blend with brewed coffee, as it has some similarities in colour and flavour. “Since we source the test-roasted coffee from Ennoki and another two roasters now, we cannot expect a high level of consistency unlike when we order the specific blend for the product. We closely communicate with those roasters about when and how many beans we need for the next batch so that they can prepare the stock,” said Ichiro Moda, unit leader of Asahi YOU. US. “However, it is inevitable that the taste and flavour of the bean as well as those of Kuramae Black are slightly different each time. We positively see this variability as one of the characteristics of Kuramae Black.”

Sumidagawa Brewing, a microbrewery located on the premises of the Asahi Group’s head office, produces craft beers such as Kuramae Black and Sayama Green. It was originally established in 1995, and now is under the management of Asahi YOU. US. When making Kuramae Black, it brews stout beer and coffee separately, then blends them at about 70 and 30 percent, respectively. The stout beer contains 7-8 percent alcohol, which is reduced to 4.5 percent in Kuramae Black.

Left: Kuramae Black. Right: Sayama Green
Images: Asahi YOU. US, Ltd

Going Green

Sayama Green is beer blended with a green tea infusion, which launched in April 2022. Sayama in Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, is one of the most famous tea-producing districts in Japan. When making Sayama Green, they use a by-product of sencha called keba-cha (hairy tea). Keba-cha is the surface of the stem of the tea leaves that comes off during the rolling and drying process and is separated from the sencha in the final cleaning by a sorting machine.

When producing Sayama Green, keba-cha is brewed in room temperature water for three hours in order to extract a clear liquor with sweetness and umami, without much bitterness or astringency. After the infused keba-cha is strained, the liquor is boiled for a few seconds to sanitise it. Finally, the cooled infusion is blended with an Indian Pale Ale (IPA) of 30 to 70 percent, with an alcohol content of 4.5 percent.

Keba-cha is sourced from three young tea producers in Sayama: Okutomien, Yokotaen and Ishidaen. Masahiro Okutomi of Okutomien explained, “When neatly shaped whole leaf sencha is sorted, some by-products are collected separately such as stems, powdery leaf, keba-cha and so on. Those by-products are still drinkable and usable teas. They are refined by firing or roasting, then sold as stem tea, roasted tea, or powdery tea in tea shops. Keba-cha can be added to tea bags after cutting into smaller particles.” He said that it is also helpful to clean up the tea- processing machines before resuming manufacturing, since the hairy keba-cha can absorb tiny dust or odour in the machines. “We are pleased to offer keba-cha as a raw material for Sayama Green, that is a unique and effective way to utilise keba-cha and increase its value.”

Asahi YOU. US supplies its craft beers in barrels for catering services, mainly beer restaurants or pubs in the neighbouring areas. The canned products are also sold in liquor shops or ecommerce sites. The company produced 3,300 litres of Kuramae Black in 2022 and estimates it will produce 4,200 litres in 2023. Asahi YOU brewed 4,050 litres of Sayama Green in 2022 and expects 4,100 in 2023.

• Yumi Nakatsugawa has been working as a freelance writer specialising in food and restaurant management. While freelancing, she developed a love of black tea as well as tea- producing countries and tea people. Her passion for black tea has brought her to Sri Lanka, India, Kenya, Indonesia, Nepal, Malaysia, and Papua New Guinea to see tea production firsthand. Based in Japan, Yumi may be reached at: ym_n@nifty.com.

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The country’s tea industry had also been affected by many factors, the most serious being the sharp decrease in tea production. Experts say that the main cause of the decline was the sudden ban on all agrochemicals including fertilisers from April to November 2021, decided by the then President Rajapaksa, who abruptly declared that the whole country would go organic without any preparation. Furthermore, soon after the ban was lifted, the price of imported fertilisers surged 20 to 30 times due to the Russia-Ukraine war, followed by the drastic depreciation of the SLR in the foreign exchange market. Consequently, the Sri Lanka’s annual tea production in 2022 was 251,499 metric tonnes (mt), a decrease of 16% from 299,488 mt in 2021, the lowest since 1995 when the yearly crop was 245,900 mt (Source: the Sri Lanka Tea Board).

“The year-on-year decline continued till January 2023, however, this February the crop increased to 18,715 mt from 18,163 mt last year. So, I expect from March the situation will improve, and positive growth from April onwards. Because now fertilisers are going into tea fields, as the price is coming down. Compared to conditions in early 2021, the price of fertilisers is still ten times, and the application is about 50% to 60%, but it is much better than last year. So, we predict the total tea production this year will be 270,000 to 280, 000 mt,” said Niraj De Mel, chairman of the Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB).

Fuel imports and supply in the country are also improving. The fuel situation is still tough but much better than the chaotic period in the first half of 2022. Similarly, electricity charges have soared three to four times, a heavy burden for not only private tea factories but also for households. However, the year-long rolling power cuts ended on 15 February this year.

“There are many challenges we face, both domestically and globally. In recent years, the Ceylon tea industry has been disrupted by the fertiliser ban, climate change, high inflation and rising input costs, as well as political issues. Internationally, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Iranian sanctions, global inflation, shipping and logistics problems, fluctuation in exchange rate and tea prices in the world market, have all had an impact,” explained Anil Cooke, managing director and CEO, Asia Siyaka Commodities PLC, adding that an oversupply of black tea, particularly from India and Kenya, has become a significant factor.

However, he noted that fertiliser availability has improved remarkably and costs for tea growers are falling. Furthermore, “freight rates have declined and we can ship our teas faster as more containers are available. The digital tea auction, which we switched to in April 2020, is [still] working well. So, I am optimistic that we will have a better second half in 2023”, said Cooke.

Apart from the economic turmoil in the country, De Mel expressed his concern about changes in weather patterns in tea planting districts, which might be an effect of global climate change. Tea quality seasons in this island nation are influenced by the two monsoons; the north-east monsoon from January to March which improves the quality in the western area, and the south-west monsoon from July to mid-September enhances the characteristic flavour in the Uva Province in the eastern region, especially the Uva seasonal tea, which is renowned for its exotic menthol-like flavour. However, the essential dry spell with cold nights, which is crucial for quality tea manufacture, has become unstable, and intermittent rainy days in the Uva season disturb the concentration of flavory components in the green leaf. “We cannot combat the weather or nature, but now some solutions are being sought with the latest studies and experiments at the Tea Research Institute. I’d like to see Sri Lanka coming back to what we were reputed for in the past,” De Mel said.

Despite the pandemic and economic and political difficulties, all projects to improve plantation workers’ welfare are continuing. Since 1992 when the majority of state-owned plantations were privatised with the formation of 23 Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs), the overall standard of life in plantations including housing, medical care, education, sanitation and so on, have considerably progressed. During the Covid outbreak, the estates provided face masks and hand sanitisers, measured body temperature of everyone three times a day, prepared patient wards for separation, and administered three vaccinations to 100 percent of plantation residents. “Therefore, I believe few suffered from the disease and no death was directly caused by Covid-19 in the plantation sector,” said Roshan Rajadurai, managing director of three RPCs; Talawakelle, Kelani Valley and Horana Plantations, belonging to the Hayleys Group.

Tea, rubber and coconuts plantations in the country have more than 100 years of history, and are now facing a severe shortage of workers, as younger generations tend to look for a better life in the big cities. “We cannot or shouldn’t stop the outflow of workers,” said Rajadurai. However, for a short period of time under the nation-wide lockdowns or curfews, many returned to the plantations and the RPCs offered them work and full support. For the sustainable future of plantations, the RPCs have gradually introduced the so-called ‘Revenue Share Model of Work’, in which workers can control their working hours, operations, and are paid based on their own output. In this model, workers are more independent, self-supervised, and earn nearly twice as much as in fully fixed routine work. “We have to change the 150-year-old plantation system to new models to meet the requirement of the times. The revenue share model is very efficient and the only method that can ensure the continuity of tea industry of Sri Lanka,” Rajadurai shared confidently.

• Yumi Nakatsugawa is a freelance writer specialising in food and restaurant management. While freelancing, she developed a love of black tea as well as tea-producing countries and tea people. Based in Japan, Yumi may be reached at: ym_n@nifty.com.

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During the most serious spell of the pandemic from 2020 to the first quarter of 2022, Japanese green tea production, domestic consumption and exports showed only temporary changes and the overall trend in the past decades recovered in a short period of time.

Japan produces steam-type green tea mainly, and the national production has been gradually decreasing in the last two decades according to the statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF). The total yearly production has maintained between 80,000 to 100,000 metric tonnes (mt) in the same period except in 2020 and 2021 when production dropped to 69,800 mt and 78,100 mt, respectively.

“The main harvesting season in Japan is from the end of April to May, when the best quality tea is manufactured from the first flush of the year. While some farmers pluck the spring flush only, others harvest leaves several times till October, and those second, third and autumn/winter teas are well-accepted as ordinary quality tea. Consequently, Japanese green tea producers can adjust their crop yield by reducing or increasing the number of harvesting times,” explained Osami Moriyama, managing director, Japan Tea Central Public Interest Incorporated Association. “Additionally, tea can be stored for a longer period of time and the increased stock will become an additional supply, which tends to suppress demand resulting in a drop in prices. This is the main reason for the sudden decrease in 2020, but it could have bounced back by 12 percent from the existing tea field in 2021.”

The first ever State of Emergency was issued nationwide in April and May 2020, however, it didn’t intend to discourage the agricultural sector. Therefore, the spring flush tea was manufactured as usual, but it seemed many tea farmers predicted the shrink in demand and reduced later harvests resulted in the decrease of the total crop of the year.

Moriyama said that Japanese tea farmers are facing an aging problem and shortage of successors over the years, which is causing the increase of abandoned tea fields. “[However], tea bush can produce leaves for several decades and it is possible to store made tea without deteriorating in quality for a longer period of time if it is kept under air-tight and cooler conditions.” He added that these are the differences between fresh vegetables and tea. “Therefore, the impact of the pandemic on the tea industry was rather limited and it could get back on track quickly.”

Covid Minimally Affected RTD Sales

One of the significances in Japanese green tea consumption is, about one-fourth of green tea is drunk in ready-to-drink (RTD) form, which has steadily increased since its launch in 1985 when ITO EN put the world’s first canned green tea on sale. While RTD tea has more or less maintained its sales during the pandemic, demand for leaf tea rose sharply in a short period time when ‘staying home’ was strongly recommended. In addition, consumers buy more tea through internet shopping which grew from 9 percent of all green tea purchases in 1999 to 15.1 percent in 2020 per MAFF. Although there is no clear data, it seemed that the restrictions of going out of the house encouraged consumers to order any sort of food and goods online.

Japan’s tea production, imports and demand Source: MAFF

Green Tea Exports Surge

Japan’s green tea export has expanded in recent years, especially, the demand for organic tea and powdered tea including matcha continues to be strong. In 2021, Japan exported 6,179 mt of green tea in total, of which 3,155 mt or 51 percent was leaf tea, and the remaining 3,024 MT or 49 percent was powdered tea. The main export destinations for organic green tea are the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom. In 2021, Japan exported 2,254 mt of green tea to the US, of which 1,628 mt or 73 percent was powdered tea, and 604 mt or 26.8 percent, was Japanese Agricultural Standard (JAS)-certified organic tea. Meanwhile the EU together with the UK imported 834 mt of Japanese green tea, of which 646 mt or 77.4 percent was organic. The EU only imported 775 mt of Japanese green tea, comprising of 467 mt or 60 percent of leaf tea and the rest 307 mt or 40 percent of powdered tea per MAFF.

Not only the Covid-19 outbreak but other various factors are now influencing the tea industry, such as the rising cost of fuel, electricity, fertilisers, packaging materials, transport and so on, triggered by the Russia’s invasion to Ukraine in February 2022. The sharp depreciation of Japanese yen against US dollar has been affecting to the nation’s overall economy. All those factors are lessening the profitability in the tea trade.

“The Japanese tea industry has more than 800 years of history and has created its unique culture over the centuries. We pay the utmost respect and place importance on this heritage,” shared Moriyama. “However, we shouldn’t stick to the past and need to accept the latest trends which might be considered a wrong path by previous generations.” He added, “If we do nothing, the tea market will not grow in the years ahead. We will need to find ways to provide Japanese tea that meets the requirements or preferences of younger or overseas consumers.”

A leading Japanese green tea brand and the largest RTD green tea manufacturer, ITO EN, experienced a 10 percent growth in leaf tea sales in early 2020 during stay-at-home restrictions. Large size boxes of tea bags met a good demand. While RTD green tea decreased in the same period, it has been recovering since 2021. Export of leaf tea has grown steadily in spite of the pandemic and the sudden surge of sea freight in the last few years. Akihiro Murase, public relations officer, ITO-EN, said “We established the new medium-to-long-term business plan in June 2022. One of the key strategies is to globalise our Oi Ocha brand products. We will try to familiarise the Japanese tea culture, not only to the North America but also throughout the world.”

Japan’s Lesser Known Black Tea Market

Approximately 90 percent of black tea marketed in Japan is imported from four countries; roughly 40 percent from Sri Lanka, 20 percent each from India and Kenya, and 10 percent from Indonesia. A trade association for black tea, the Japan Tea Association (JTA), focuses on imported black tea and promotes its healthy market growth along with government authorities, embassies of major tea-producing countries as well as its 50 member companies.

“Japan’s black tea import had remained stable more than a decade, between 16,000 mt and 17,000 mt a year until 2021,” said Kohei Akiba, managing director of the JTA. However, the import quantity from January to October 2022 showed a decline of 87.1 percent compared with the same period in the previous year, decreasing from 14,297 mt in 2021 to 12,448 mt in 2022 according to Trade Statistics of Japan, Ministry of Finance. In addition to the Russia/Ukraine war, it appears that the Sri Lanka’s political and economic turmoil, which intensified in 2022, has started to affect the Japan’s black tea market. Sri Lanka’s annual tea production in 2022 ended up at 251,499 mt, a 16 percent decrease versus 2021 and the lowest since 1995 when the country produced 245,900 mt per the Sri Lanka Tea Board.

The total value of imported black tea in the same period increased from JPY 9.8 billion in 2021 to JPY 11.1 billion in 2022 or 113.1 percent. “It was caused by the price hike of black tea in producing countries. Besides, the depreciation of the Japanese yen in the foreign exchange market is having much impact,” said Akiba. The Japanese yen has started to fall sharply since March 2022 when one US dollar traded at around JPY 120, then hit JPY 150 in October for the first time in 32 years.

Those unfavourable business circumstances that followed the Covid-19 epidemic have continued for some time. The JTA, however, didn’t suspend most of their black tea promotional efforts including seminars, trainings, various black tea-related events by taking cautious anti-infectious measures in the last three years. Moreover, they are considering new activities such as special iced tea promotions to further expand the black tea market in the country.

Japan’s Coffee Market Holds its Own During Covid

Coffee is supposed to be the most affected non-alcoholic beverage together with the dining industry when restaurants and cafés were requested to restrain operation or shorten opening hours to curb the spread of the Covid-19 infection. “Obviously, the wholesale of coffee to the catering trade had plunged in a certain period time. Also, many note that when most cafés were closed, coffee lovers shifted to enjoy more cups at home,” said Seiichiro Oyama, executive director of the All Japan Coffee Association (AJCA). “In addition, consumers were required to buy more coffee online when they stayed home to keep themselves safe from the disease. However, the available statistics do not clearly show these changes in sales channels or consumer habits.”

According to the AJCA’s statistics, based on the Trade Statistics of Japan, Ministry of Finance, and the AJCA’ survey, Japan’s domestic coffee consumption had shown a steady increase to 470,213 mt in 2018. However, it had decreased for three consecutive years; 452,903 mt (2019), 430,719 mt (2020) and 423,706 mt (2021). The estimated figures from January to October in 2022 showed an increase of 1.1 percent to 363,719 mt versus the same period in 2021, which was 359,713 mt. “Coffee consumption in Japan was likely affected by the pandemic to some extent. However, the decrease started in 2019, which was before the spread of the infection, and the slight upturn in 2022 was not sufficient to return to pre-pandemic levels. Therefore, not only Covid-19 but also other factors may have been affecting the coffee market”, Oyama commented after carefully analysed the trends.

Japan’s tea production and area under tea. Source: MAFF

Other consumer surveys conducted by the AJCA indicated that the volume of regular coffee and home consumption increased significantly in 2020. Whereas instant, liquid, single-serve and decaffeinated coffee products have more or less maintained their current sales trends. Oyama said the coffee market is becoming more diversified, so coffee companies need to offer products that meet consumer demand. “Furthermore, public interest in the health benefits of coffee, the sustainability of the coffee industry, and the recycling or reuse of used coffee grounds has grown noticeably in the last few years,” he shared.

Most of coffee consumed in Japan is imported from Central and South America, Africa and Asian countries located within the ‘coffee belt’. Meanwhile some Japan’s southern-most islands are situated at the northern limit of the coffee belt, and have been producing coffee nearly half a century, although its volume is limited and the cost of production is much higher than major producing countries. In addition, some international coffee companies have started to become involved in coffee production with the cooperation of local farmers in recent years. Oyama encourages those movements, noting that “geographically, Japan cannot become one of the main coffee producers in the world. However, its coffee can be marketed as one of the specialties in the region, and hopefully provide a new joy of coffee for connoisseurs.”

• Yumi Nakatsugawa has been working as a freelance writer specialising in food and restaurant management. While freelancing, she developed a love of black tea as well as tea-producing countries and tea people. Her passion for black tea has brought her to Sri Lanka, India, Kenya, Indonesia, Nepal, Malaysia, and Papua New Guinea to see tea production firsthand. Based in Japan, Yumi may be reached at: ym_n@nifty.com.

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The crisis hit people’s day-to-day living substantially. The citizens are suffering from soaring inflation said to be more than 60 percent, along with a shortage of food, fuel and medicine. Rolling power cuts have been imposed since February, in which the supply of electricity is suspended by changing areas and the duration of time that was extended to 13 hours a day in the worst period. Long queues at gas stations, interrupting businesses, transport, schools, etc, have been experienced nationwide. 

The tea industry is not an exception — its tea production in the first half of the year showed an 18 percent decrease, from 161.7 metric tonnes (mt) in 2021 to 132.9 mt in 2022, per the Sri Lanka Tea Board. 

Under this challenging situation, Niraj De Mel was appointed as the new chairman of the Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB) on 22 June for the second time (his first term was from June 2004 to November 2005). Having a professional career in tea for 45 years, De Mel is anticipated to lead the industry in a right direction. 

Explaining the main cause of the current crop loss, De Mel said, “The decline of crop started from November 2021, caused by the sudden ban of importing chemical fertilizers in April 2021 triggered by the decision of the then president to go organic for all agriculture. However, tea producers did not have readily available organic fertilizers, neither allowed the already imported fertilizers to be distributed.” 

The ban was lifted on 30 November 2021, but it was soon followed by the Russia’s invasion in Ukraine since February 2022, which led the price hike of agricultural fertilizers globally. Furthermore, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka devalued the Sri Lanka rupee (SLR) on 7 March 2022 up to 15 percent as one of several steps to obtain an IMF’s loan program, resulted in further price rise internally. 

“The cost of fertilizer was SLR 30 per kilogram in the first quarter in 2021, which surged 20 holds to SLR 600 per kilo now,” said Lalith Munasinghe, executive director of Bogawantalawa Tea Estates PLC. However, the SLTB introduced a low interest loan scheme in June to enable tea estates and small holders to purchase fertilizers. 

Anil Cooke, managing director of Asia Siyaka Commodities PLC, further elaborated, noting, “The soft loan is granted to estates and private factories, the latter distribute fertilizers to registered small tea growers who will pay back out of leaf sales to the factories. Then, the repayment from estates and factories is through tea auction with brokers recovering from auction proceeds.” 

The depreciation of the SLR was reflected in the weekly tea auction price, which has risen about 30 percent in SLR-basis since mid-March. “Auction prices responded to the depreciation and initially compensated for rising costs. However, the value in US dollar-basis has declined due to the high cost of freight and other market factors,” Cooke commented. 

Despite the current turmoil, the Colombo tea auction has been conducted without any postponements or cancellations, apart from the massive anti-government demonstrations or disturbances those often escalated to violence. The crucial shift of the auction system from the traditional outcry to an online platform in April 2020, urged by the outbreak of Covid-19 infections, has played a significant role in continuing production, sales and export of Ceylon tea. 

 De Mel said that the shortage of fuel is affecting all stakeholders in the value chain across the board. “Thankfully, tea exporters are getting together to pay with their proceeds and ensuring at least some quantities flow down to the tea manufacturers so they can carry out green leaf collections, transport made tea, and so brokers may distribute samples.” 

The large estate sector has been operating within its normal practices. “Tea factories in large estates have conventionally installed their own generators. Therefore, we could carry on tea processing either with the government power or our own electricity,” Munasinghe commented. “Furthermore, tea factories are on a preferential list to get fuel, so we are producing tea without interruption and maintaining the quality.” 

The private sector, which contributes about 70 percent of the total tea production, is also managing under this challenging circumstances. “At the moment, the private tea factories are facing severe shortage in fuel supply to run the factories, green leaf collection, made tea transportation, etc. Some factories have limited their production because of this,” said Chaminda Jayawardana, owner of Lumbini Tea Valley, a private tea factory. “Fortunately, Lumbini has a generator as well as our own fuel tank, which we acquired from the profit of direct exports. This is an advantage for us, and we keep running tea processing in full capacity.” He added that there is a strong demand for quality teas and tea export is benefitted by the depreciated exchange rate of SLR, although the cost of production is rising rapidly. 

The tea industry in Sri Lanka, with its 155 years of history, has been one of the most essential foreign currency earners for the country. It is obvious and strongly expected that Ceylon tea will be a key performer during the reconstruction of the nation. 

• Yumi Nakatsugawa has been working as a freelance writer specialising in food and restaurant management. Her passion for black tea has brought her to Sri Lanka, India, Kenya, Indonesia, Nepal, Malaysia, and Papua New Guinea to see tea production firsthand. Based in Japan, she may be reached at: ym_n@nifty.com. 

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Based on its mission to familiarise more people with specialty coffee, Blue Bottle Coffee, which was founded in Oakland, California in the early 2000s, entered the Japanese market in 2015. As of September 2020, it operates 20 cafés throughout Japan, and has been expanding specialty coffee-related products such as instant coffee, cold brew canned coffee, along with coffee brewing goods, cups, bags, etc. Those products are now sold in its cafés and online shop.

The vending machine is unique sales method for soft drinks in Japan. The Japan Soft Drink Association estimates that over two million vending machines for PET bottled or canned beverages are in operation in almost all public facilities as well as at every corner of the street nationwide. The machines have been advanced and sophisticated over the years. A cashless payment function is becoming especially popular lately, responding to the move from notes and coins to electronic money or credit cards.

Blue Bottle Coffee Japan started to consider how to utilise a vending machine to distribute their items before the outbreak of the pandemic. It customised a pair of vending machines exclusively for its products, and its icon, the blue bottle illustrations, appear on the white-coloured machines, which now accept cashless payments only.

Shibuya is one of the busiest and most crowded areas in Tokyo, however, Blue Bottle Coffee has not opened a café there, yet. Therefore, the company selected a parking lot, Mitsui’s Repark, in Shibuya as the best site for the installation of their first vending machine. Consequently, Blue Bottle Coffee expects the vending machines can help its existing and new customers purchase its products conveniently and quickly.

Blue Bottle Coffee sells several types of cold brew canned coffee (236ml, JPY 640, each) in the machine. In addition, it sells whole bean coffee (Bella Donovan blend, 200g, JPY 1620), instant coffee (4g stick × 5 per box, JPY1620), and an eco-coffee cup (340ml, JPY 1980), which differentiate its vending machine from popular RTD machines. The canned drinks are cooled at 5 degrees Celsius, and others are kept at 20 degrees Celsius.

“The response from the consumers are quite good so far. We keep promoting the joy of specialty coffee as much as we can, and we view a vending machine is one of the useful and established sales channels in Japan which can offer fast and practical service,” said Megumi Yoshida, Blue Bottle Coffee Japan’s PR manager.

Outside of the United States and Japan, Blue Bottle Coffee also operates cafés in Korea, but the company’s foray into selling coffee through vending machines is currently in Japan only.

• Yumi Nakatsugawa has been working as a freelance writer specialising in food and restaurant management. While freelancing, she developed a love of black tea as well as tea-producing countries and tea people. Her passion for black tea has brought her to Sri Lanka, India, Kenya, Indonesia, Nepal, Malaysia, and Papua New Guinea to see tea production firsthand.
  Based in Japan, Yumi may be reached at: ym_n@nifty.com.

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