Coffee Theft Is Becoming a Major Problem in the US as Prices Skyrocket

In February, the cost of coffee hit an all-time high in the U.S., with coffee futures spiking in New York City by 6% in a day on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), reaching more than $4.30 per pound. Things are getting so bad that it's leading to a surge in coffee theft, with beans stolen by the truckload. 

“There were dozens of thefts in the last year, something that would happen only rarely in the past,” Todd Costley, a logistic sales coordinator for Hartley Transportation, shared with Reuters. The news organization noted that in the U.S., thefts like this have been perpetrated by organized gangs who pretend to be transportation companies in order to obtain the beans. Costley noted that they are targeting smaller contracts from importers, making themselves appealing with cheaper pricing. These trucks often carry about 44,000 pounds, or as Reuters noted, about $180,000 worth of the product. Costley added, “Once they get the coffee, they disappear.”

While coffee theft is a little newer in the U.S., it's far from a new issue in coffee-growing regions. In 2024, Bloomberg reported on the rise of bean theft in Uganda, while in 2017, Fair Planet reported on Kenya's “unprecedented” number of coffee thefts, all perpetrated by professional thieves.

“In the string of attacks that we have recorded in the factories around this area, the thefts happen so fast, and the thieves seem to know where exactly the berries are located and how to navigate their way through the stores,” Jeffrey Kinoti, a commanding police officer in Nyeri County, shared with Fair Planet at the time. “The style with which they also break the doors and pack the berries points to the work of professionals.” 

Reuters noted that coffee theft is also problematic in Brazil and Vietnam, the two largest coffee-producing nations in the world. There, the thefts typically happen at the farms following a harvest. In January, thieves stole an estimated $230,000 from one farm in Brazil alone. 

The good news is that coffee futures traded down slightly on Wednesday at $4 per pound. However, the bad news is that a drought followed by heavy rains in Brazil and Vietnam is expected to hinder harvests, while the demand for coffee is absolutely skyrocketing. According to data from the National Coffee Association, the number of American adults who consumed coffee in the past day jumped by 37% between 2004 and 2024, with no sign of slowing down.