COFFEE NOTES NOVEMBER 2020
As we look back at almost a month of lockdown, we’re looking forward to the future with November’s edition of Monthly Coffee Notes. We’ll be talking about what the new café experience looks like and what customers expect to see to give operators a guiding hand in getting ready for another re-opening. But don’t worry, we’re also giving you a little break from Covid too. This month, we're taking your taste buds on a journey through tea with a pocket flavour guide to this comforting sales-driving beverage, while also introducing you to the latest innovation in coffee pod recycling. Enjoy, and get in touch should you need any support with your coffee solution or your plans for the new year.
3-MIN READ
COFFEE PODS RECYCLING TAKING SUSTAINABILITY TO THE NEXT LEVEL Last week, Nestlé announced a milestone achievement that’s set to be a game changer for sustainability within the coffee industry. Through the NESPRESSO and NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto brands, Nestlé has joined up with the team at Jacobs Douwe Egberts UK (JDE) to create Podback: a first of its kind cross-industry recycling scheme for coffee pods in the UK. Podback is a not-for-profit organisation and will be launching in the UK in early 2021. The scheme is a response to a recent survey where 35% of consumers stated they were unaware that pods can be recycled, and 90% saying that they’d like to be able to recycle their coffee pods through household recycling.
WHO’S INVOLVED? • T he scheme will initially cover NESPRESSO, NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto, STARBUCKS at Home and TASSIMO (JDE) pods — the majority of the market. • The eventual aim is to expand the programme to include all coffee brands that use plastic or aluminium pods in the UK.
HOW IT WORKS: Podback provides 3 easy ways for consumers to recycle their coffee pods… 1. C ollect Plus: Consumers take their coffee pods to their local CollectPlus drop-off point. There are 6,500 in the UK. 2. K erbside collection: To pioneer easy recycling initiatives, coffee pods will be collected alongside regular household waste and recycling. This will initially be supported by Exeter City Council, Cheltenham Borough Council and South Derbyshire District Council (covering over 330,000 residents) but will increase in range as new council partners get involved.
3. R etailer ‘handover at home’: The eventual aim is to make it possible for partners to enable consumers to have their coffee pods collected for recycling when they have their groceries delivered. Collected pods will be taken to re-processors in the UK to separate the packaging from the used coffee grounds before being recycled into a range of everyday products.
“ T here is power in collaboration and we know that by joining forces we can have even greater influence over the recycling rate of pods.” Richard Howatson, Business Unit Manager, Nescafé Dolce Gusto and Starbucks at Home.
NEXT STEPS As 2021 moves closer, the Podback team is working to get as many manufactuers, retailers and local authorities on board as possible to ensure that the scheme is as effective as it can be. Podback is a huge step forward in the journey towards 100% recyclable or reusable packaging by 2025 — it’s also a great initiative to lead our consumers to do their part to protect the planet. If you want to learn more, you can watch the announcement recording from last week here, read the press release, or visit the new Podback website.
2-MIN READ
TASTING TEA IT’S ALL ABOUT THE FLAVOUR As the world of coffee puts more of a focus on creating a premium café environment, we’re looking to tea as a key driver of comfort within a high-quality customer experience post-lockdown. Being a nation of tea drinkers, with more than one in 10 of us drinking tea at least six times a day 1, we’re sharing some fun tasting notes and flavour profiles of the most popular tea beverages to get your tastebuds tingling. EARL GREY • C itrus: bergamot, lemon, grapefruit. • F loral, delicate. • M ilk will enhance the aromas; sweetener is not always necessary. • Water that’s too hot will scald the tea, leaving it flavourless.
BREAKFAST • H earty and versatile. • C an taste slightly bitter. • L ight floral undertones. • B lending the tea with milk gives it a honey-like taste with a similar scent to toast.
CHAI • C an include several different spices: - cardamom
- cloves
- ginger
- star anise
- cinnamon • S weet and warming. • B rew with milk, sweeten with sugar or honey.
GREEN • E arthy and nutty in flavour. • If brewed correctly, it should taste sweeter. • N otes of spinach, umami and slight bitterness. • S ome have compared its flavour to a ‘freshly mowed lawn’!
DARJEELING • M uscatel flavours create a ‘musky spiciness.’ • Low in malt, so can taste sweeter than other black teas. • H igh tannin content brings out flavours in savoury treats. • A dding elderflower emphasises the existing sweetness.
ICED • S weetened and shaken with ice, rich and flavourful. • O ften compared to still lemonades, but can support versions with milk too, e.g. iced chai lattes. • Iced drinks go well with strong fruit flavours, for example the popular Teavana™ range.
1 Source: The Grocer, ‘Tea addicts, gender splits and the love of a traditional cuppa: 10 charts explaining UK attitudes to hot beverages.’ September 2019.
5-MIN READ
KEEPING SERVICE SAFE As we move into 2021 with an idea of what the new safetyconscious café experience will look like, we’ve put together a more detailed checklist of the measures and procedures that operators can use to start creating this unique environment.
KEEPING SERVICE SAFE CHECKLIST: CAFÉ EDITION S ocial distancing signage (including floor stickers). ace coverings worn as mandated indoors by both team members F and customers. H and sanitiser for team members and customers. C ontactless payments set up to go. C ommunications explaining how to pay with contactless. Protective screens to cover lids and cups from droplets. Protective machine dividers where necessary when machines sit together. rovide your teams with correct safety measures and how to communicate P them to customers. ave open and supportive conversations with your teams around their H comfort levels in returning to work. tilise any external space if you have it or look to ‘create’ an outside space U if possible. Keep doors open when possible — ventilation is key. reate one-way systems and a safe queuing system with clear signage C to facilitate a good flow in and out of the café. Implement a pre-order and collection service if feasible. eep consumables behind the counter — customers will ask for them, K or your teams can ask your customers. Identify and take advantage of any remote training and support. Lastly, you can be proud of these extra safety measures that you’ve put into place over weeks in lockdown by shouting about them to your customers so they can really feel the collective effort involved in ensuring that their safety is paramount. Please be sure to regularly check the government website for updates and in-depth guidance on keeping your café safe and Covid compliant.
ALWAYS OPEN FOR YOU Supporting our customers and consumers for a safe future is our top priority, and we’re proud to work closely with them in these months of uncertainty. Here’s how we’ve contributed to their re-opening as the UK moves into the new normal.
5000+
2000
3646
600,000+
2331
414
TRAINING AND IMMERSION VIDEOS TO SUPPORT REMOTE AND VIRTUAL TRAINING
‘ALWAYS OPEN FOR YOU’ REASSURANCE CAMPAIGN
FLOOR DISTANCE STICKERS
PROTECTION SCREENS TO COVER LIDS AND CUPS FROM DROPLETS
HAND SANITIZER UNITS AND AUTOMATED DISPENSERS NEXT TO COFFEE MACHINES
SOCIAL DISTANCING SIGNAGE
BEVERAGES PROVIDED TO OUR KEY WORKER HEROES ON THE FRONT LINE.
MACHINE DIVIDERS TO ENABLE OUR CUSTOMERS TO RE-OPEN MACHINES NEXT TO EACH OTHER
A NEW STRAND OF ARABICA COFFEE HAS BEEN DISCOVERED YEMENIA – THE NEW STRAIN OF ARABICA
Yemeni coffee specialist Qima Coffee worked in partnership with world-renowned coffee geneticist Christophe Montagnon’s company RD2 Vision, on a multi-year research project into Yemenia — their newly discovered genetic group of the arabica bean.
THE PROJECT INVOLVED GENETIC FINGERPRINTING OF 137 ARABICA SAMPLES COVERING 25,000 SQUARE KILOMETRES.
THE NEW STRAND OF ARABICA — YEMENIA — PROVIDES AN ‘EXCEPTIONAL’ CUP QUALITY.
IT WAS ASSESSED BY A JUDGING PANEL OF 35 EXPERTS FROM 24 LEADING GLOBAL COFFEE COMPANIES ACROSS 14 COUNTRIES, AND SCORED AN AVERAGE OF 90+ OUT OF 100.
TASTING NOTES INCLUDE YELLOW BOURBON, WITH A CLEAN AND SWEET FLAVOUR.
BEANS IDENTIFIED AS YEMENIA AND SOURCED THROUGH QIMA COFFEE HAVE BEEN SOLD FOR A REMARKABLE $200 PER POUND AT PRIVATE AUCTION.
Source: Daily Coffee News, Newly Discovered Arabica Genetic Group Yemenia Enters The Global Market, September 2020.
Nestlé Coffee Partners offers a range of brands and solutions to fit your customers’ requirements. If you’d like to talk through any of what you’ve read and explore how we can help you leverage the insight we’ve shared this month, or if you’d simply like to catch up over a socially distanced coffee, we’d love to hear from you.
We’re available on +44 (0)203 124 1029 (Option 2) or at StarbucksSupportEMENA@nestle.com
STARBUCKS and the Starbucks logo are used under license by Nestlé. Serveware varies from images shown.