According to the latest information from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the export value of agricultural, forestry and fishery products in January 2025 reached 5.08 billion USD, down 4.9% over the same period in 2024. Many key agricultural export products recorded negative growth in the first month of the year such as vegetables, rice, cashew nuts, wood and wood products...

However, coffee exports - the bean considered the "brown gold" of the Central Highlands people - exploded, setting a historic record.

Specifically, in the first month of 2025, our country's coffee exports only reached 140,000 tons, a sharp decrease of 41.1% compared to the same period last year, but the value of revenue jumped to 763 million USD, an increase of 5%.

The reason is that the average export price of coffee in January is estimated at 5,450 USD/ton, an increase of 78.5% over the same period in 2024.

Notably, with the figure of 763 million USD earned in January, coffee officially surpassed vegetables and fruits (400 million USD), seafood (750 million USD) to become the item with the second highest export turnover of the agricultural sector, only after wood and wood products (1.4 billion USD).

In 2024, Vietnam will export 1.3 million tons of coffee, worth 5.62 billion USD, down 17.1% in volume but up 32.5% in value compared to 2023. The average export price of coffee in 2024 will reach 4,178 USD/ton, up 59.9%.

Germany, Italy and Spain are the three largest coffee consuming markets of Vietnam in 2024 with market shares of 10.7%, 8.2% and 7.9% respectively. Among the group of 15 key markets, exports to Malaysia recorded the strongest increase (doubled), followed by the Netherlands with an increase of 94%, and exports to the Belgian market with an increase of 9.3%, the lowest.

In our country, Robusta accounts for 90% of the coffee area. This is a specialty coffee of Vietnam. The "world culinary map" website Taste Atlas describes that when roasted, Vietnamese Robusta has a burnt sugar taste, slightly bitter, but when combined with condensed milk, it will create a balance. If Arabica is used, the coffee will have a sour taste, combined with milk it will "not be as flattering to the mouth as Robusta".

For many years, Vietnam has been the world's number 1 Robusta supplier. Therefore, during the recent Lunar New Year holiday, the disruption of supply from Vietnam contributed to a sharp increase in Robusta coffee prices, setting a new record of 5,609 USD/ton on January 31 (the second day of Tet).

W-ca phe.png
Robusta coffee prices hit a new record, Vietnam sells "brown gold" to make a fortune. Photo: Nguyen Hue

On February 6, on the London floor, Robusta coffee prices continued to increase, reaching 5,643 USD/ton for delivery in March 2025, and the May delivery period also increased to 5,646 USD/ton.

In the domestic market, the price of green coffee increased to 129,000-130,000 VND/kg, approaching the peak of 131,000 VND recorded in mid-2024.

With the current market price developments, some people expect coffee prices to reach 150,000 VND/kg or even higher. Because according to annual practice, coffee prices will decrease during peak harvest (November, December and January of the following year), then increase in the following months when the world depends on Vietnam's supply.

Commenting on the coffee market in 2025, Ms. Nguyen Thanh Thuy - General Director of Golden Beans Coffee JSC (SHIN Coffee) - told VietNamNet : "The world and Vietnamese coffee markets will be no less exciting and have unexpected turning points compared to 2024".

According to Ms. Thuy, climate change continues to be a hot issue globally, especially for specific crops like coffee. Many growing areas in the world's two largest coffee producing countries, Brazil and Vietnam, are being affected, causing difficulties in coffee cultivation and causing many difficulties in supply.

In 2025, our country's coffee exports are forecast to increase by 1.8 million bags, to 24.4 million bags. However, Ms. Thuy also warned that businesses will face difficulties in controlling the quality of input coffee materials. Because, high coffee prices do not mean that the quality will be commensurate.

In fact, in 2024, although the export of this item set a historical record, many export enterprises had to "struggle" in the chase for prices and the disruption of the raw material supply chain.

However, looking at the positive side, SHIN Coffee leaders believe that coffee consumption in major markets around the world is still growing, creating a premise and open opportunities for coffee export activities in the following years.

In addition, issues that directly affect the coffee industry such as weather, supply-demand balance and geopolitical fluctuations will determine the market situation, including risks to face and opportunities to seize.

Vietnamese coffee has become an 'ATM' that makes billions of dollars, the most expensive in the world. The position of Vietnamese coffee has changed when roasters around the world are rushing to buy it, and the world market also depends on the supply from our country. From there, Vietnam's cheap Robusta coffee beans have risen to become the most expensive in the world.