CoffeeNetwork (New York) - A new economic impact study commissioned by the European Coffee Federation (ECF) highlights the enormous importance of coffee to Europe's economy, concluding that coffee is no longer merely an agricultural commodity or consumer beverage, but one of the continent's largest and most interconnected value chains.
According to the report, the coffee sector directly generates nearly €99 billion in gross value added (GVA) across the EU+, which includes the EU27, United Kingdom, Norway and Switzerland. When indirect and induced impacts are included, the sector's total economic contribution rises to approximately €252 billion in GVA, supports 4.7 million jobs, and generates nearly €78 billion in tax revenues.
The report reinforces Europe's position as the center of the global coffee economy. In the 2025/26 marketing year, the EU27 consumed approximately 41.9 million 60-kilogram bags, accounting for roughly 24 percent of global coffee consumption, making it the world's largest coffee-consuming market ahead of both the United States and Brazil.
Despite its dominant role in consumption, Europe produces virtually no coffee itself. Instead, its economic importance stems from what happens after green coffee arrives at European ports. The study emphasizes that Europe imports green coffee and creates value through a sophisticated ecosystem of trading, warehousing, roasting, decaffeination, soluble coffee manufacturing, packaging, logistics, retailing and hospitality.
In 2025, the EU imported approximately 2.9 million tonnes of coffee worth €18.7 billion, with more than 97 percent arriving as green coffee, reflecting Europe's longstanding strategy of conducting value-added processing domestically.
One of the report's central findings is that coffee's economic contribution is overwhelmingly generated after it enters Europe.
The study estimates that every €1 of imported green coffee generates roughly €11.20 in direct economic output within Europe, illustrating the scale of value creation through roasting, processing, marketing, distribution and foodservice activities.
Within the EU27 alone, the coffee sector directly supports:
- €191.5 billion in output
- €84.4 billion in GVA
- 1.5 million full-time equivalent jobs
- Nearly €40 billion in direct tax revenues
When supply chain and household spending effects are included, the total EU27 footprint rises to:
- €494.3 billion in output
- €216.9 billion in GVA
- 3.8 million jobs
- More than €65 billion in taxes
Across the broader EU+ region, the figures climb even higher to €582.8 billion in output, €251.5 billion in GVA, and 4.69 million jobs.
Perhaps the study's most surprising conclusion is that hospitality, rather than coffee manufacturing, generates the largest share of coffee-related economic value.
While retail coffee accounts for the majority of consumption volume, the report notes that out-of-home coffee creates significantly more value because consumers are purchasing not only coffee, but also labor, premises, equipment, convenience and hospitality services.
In the EU27, out-of-home coffee consumption generated approximately €76.5 billion in direct GVA, dwarfing the contribution from roasting and manufacturing activities. Hospitality and foodservice also account for almost 88 percent of all direct coffee-related employment in Europe, supporting more than 1.3 million jobs.
This helps explain why cafés, restaurants, bars, hotels, offices and vending services are described in the report as the true engines of coffee's employment footprint.
The report identifies several countries as critical nodes within Europe's coffee economy.
Germany serves as Europe's leading coffee gateway, handling over one-third of all EU coffee imports through ports such as Hamburg and Bremen. The country is also a major roasting, decaffeination and logistics hub.
Italy combines significant import volumes with one of Europe's largest roasting industries and a strong espresso culture. Spain plays a dual role as both a major import gateway and a large hospitality market, while Switzerland maintains an outsized influence through global coffee trading operations and premium coffee manufacturing.
The report notes that Switzerland's importance is likely understated because many coffee trading activities orchestrated from the country involve coffee that never physically enters Europe, making them difficult to capture in conventional trade statistics.
The study also sheds light on the growing significance of decaffeinated coffee.
Across the EU27, decaf coffee is estimated to support €35.5 billion in total output, €15.4 billion in GVA, and approximately 271,000 jobs. For the broader EU+ market, decaf contributes more than €44 billion in output and nearly 376,000 jobs.
Researchers point to rising health awareness, improvements in decaffeination technology, and growing consumer acceptance as drivers behind stronger decaf growth relative to conventional coffee in recent years.
Beyond Europe itself, the report argues that European coffee demand plays a critical role in economic development across producing countries.
The EU+ market accounts for approximately:
- 91% of Burundi's coffee exports
- 66% of Honduras' coffee exports
- 60% of Rwanda's coffee exports
- 56% of Uganda's coffee exports
- 54% of Brazil's coffee exports57% of Vietnam's coffee exports
For several producing countries, coffee exports destined for Europe represent between 10-13 percent of total national merchandise exports, underlining Europe's importance as a source of foreign exchange and rural livelihoods.
The report concludes that Europe's role extends far beyond trade and consumption.
Because Europe is such an important destination market, European regulations and buyer requirements increasingly shape how coffee is produced around the world. The most prominent example is the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), but the report also points to growing influence through certification systems, traceability requirements, food safety standards and sustainability expectations.
As a result, producing countries often invest in compliance systems not only to meet European requirements but also to maintain access to one of the world's most valuable coffee markets.
The report's overarching conclusion is that coffee should be viewed as one of Europe's major economic ecosystems rather than a simple agricultural commodity.
From ports and warehouses to roasters, cafés, retailers and traders, coffee supports millions of jobs and billions of euros in economic activity. The study estimates that each euro of direct coffee-related output ultimately generates approximately €2.60 of total economic activity when wider supply-chain and household-spending effects are considered.
For an industry often discussed primarily in terms of crop sizes, futures prices and retail consumption, the ECF study provides a reminder that coffee has evolved into one of Europe's most significant value chains, with economic and regulatory influence stretching from Brussels to Brazil, Vietnam, Honduras and beyond.
Alexis Rubinstein
Source: European Coffee Federation
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