The Bitter Truth Behind Coffee Prices
What does a coffee farmer really earn?
Read why coffee farmers often earn so little
The hard truth is simple: the coffee farmer often earns the least in a chain where many others profit.
We see the price on the shelf. We smell the coffee in our cup. But what remains at the beginning of the chain often remains invisible to many. And that's exactly where the true story of coffee begins.
Anyone who wants to understand what coffee truly costs must look beyond taste, packaging, and marketing. Because behind every bean lies work, risk, dependence, and an income that is by no means always proportionate to the value earned later in the chain.
The question is logical. The answer is less simple.
What does a coffee farmer really earn? There is no fixed amount that applies to every farmer. That income depends on the country, the harvest, the quality, the trade structure, the number of intermediaries, and the agreements made along the way.
Nevertheless, one thing is clear: in the global coffee chain, too little often remains at the source. The people who grow, pick, process, and prepare the product for export do most of the initial work, but by no means always share in the final sales value.
That makes this question more important than it seems at first glance. It's not just about money. It's about how fairly a supply chain is truly structured.
Why do coffee farmers often earn so little?
Cheap coffee seems attractive. But somewhere in the chain, that low price is paid for.
A coffee farmer stands at the beginning of a long chain
Coffee travels a long way before it ends up in a kitchen, office, or cafe. Between the farmer and the consumer, there are often several links, such as cooperatives, exporters, importers, roasters, packers, distributors, and retailers. Each step adds costs, processing, and margin.
The value shifts multiple times along the way
The further coffee moves through the chain, the more value becomes visible in branding, distribution, convenience and experience. This does not automatically mean that the original producer also receives more. On the contrary: the highest visible value is often found later in the chain, not at the beginning.
Low market prices affect the entire supply chain
When coffee has to remain cheap for the consumer, pressure builds up throughout the entire supply chain. And that pressure often hits hardest on those with the least negotiating power: the farmer.
From bean to cup: where does the value go along the way?
Cultivation and harvest
It starts with the farmer. That involves labor, land use, knowledge, time, and risk. Growing coffee requires care, patience, and continuous maintenance of plants and soil.
Processing and export
After harvesting, the coffee is sorted, processed, dried, transported, and exported. This also incurs costs. At the same time, the coffee disappears further from the consumer's view.
Branding, packaging and sales
Further down the chain, coffee is packaged, positioned and sold. This is where visible brand value is created. The consumer ultimately pays for the product, brand, convenience, packaging and distribution, but rarely sees how that price is distributed along the way.
The consumer: And that's exactly the problem
The final price of coffee is visible. The distribution of that price usually isn't. As a result, it remains unclear to many consumers how much of their purchase actually reaches the origin.
The bitter truth behind cheap coffee
Cheap coffee often feels like a smart choice, especially when the packaging conveys quality, sustainability, or origin. But low prices rarely tell the whole story.
Coffee can only truly appear cheap when concessions are made elsewhere in the supply chain. Sometimes, this happens in quality. Sometimes, in traceability. Sometimes, in a farmer's ability to invest in their business, their family, or the future of their land.
This doesn't mean that every affordable coffee is inherently wrong. But it does mean that price alone says little about fairness. A low consumer price is not proof of efficiency. It can also be a sign that the pressure in the supply chain is not fairly distributed.
So the question isn't just: what does this coffee cost?
The real question is: who pays the price I don't see?
Does more expensive coffee automatically mean fair trade coffee?
No. A higher retail price does not automatically mean that a coffee farmer is paid better. That is why price without context is a weak signal. Transparency is much more valuable.
So, what should you look at instead?
Why the real answer often remains hidden
Incomes vary by region and situation
A coffee farmer in Ethiopia is in a different context than a farmer in Colombia, Brazil, or Kenya. Harvesting conditions, export structures, cooperatives, market access, and quality all play a role.
Many brands don't share their true price breakdown
On packaging, you often read something about flavour notes, roasting or origin. But you rarely see how the price is really made up. As a result, the question of what a farmer earns often remains partly hidden behind fancy words.
Transparency takes time and courage
Transparency sounds simple, but in practice, it requires insight into sourcing, purchasing, relationships, logistics, and financial choices. Many brands are not yet fully transparent in these areas. This is precisely why it is important to be honest about what you can and cannot yet show. Bunafide positions itself precisely in this way: no perfect claims, but openness about origin, costs, and impact, and honesty about the steps that still need to be taken.
What your cup of coffee really does
One cup of coffee seems small. But every purchase sends money through a chain that has real consequences for real people.
Therefore, the choice of coffee is never just a matter of taste. It is also a choice about how little or how much you want to know about its journey. Those who choose consciously demand more from brands. More origin. More insight. More honesty.
That doesn't make the consumer guilty. But it does make them influential.
And it is precisely that influence that can slowly change the chain.
What Bunafide wants to change with this
Bunafide was founded on a simple conviction: coffee should not only taste good, but also be organized more fairly. The brand wants to bring transparency to a world where too much remains hidden. Not with grand words, but with small, clear steps. This aligns with your brand identity: transparent, authentic, accessible, connected, and fair.
We start with honesty about where we are now
Bunafide does not pretend that the chain is already fully transparent. In the current phase, purchases are still made through roasting houses in the Netherlands, and not everything is yet visible in the breakdown of costs and revenues at the source. That is precisely why openness is more important than perfection here.
We want to get closer to the source step by step.
Bunafide's growth plan has a clear direction: self-sourcing, building relationships with farmers, more direct purchasing, and ultimately greater transparency due to a shorter and more manageable supply chain.
We believe that real change begins with insight
According to the brand story, Bunafide doesn't want to pretend that everything is already perfect. The brand wants to show where it stands, what it's working towards, and what that process looks like. This makes Bunafide a brand not of perfect promises, but of visible progress.
Fair coffee starts with a fair question
How much do coffee farmers really earn?
It is perhaps the most important question you can ask about coffee.
Not because there is always one simple answer. But because this question reveals how the chain works, where the friction points are, and where change is needed.
Those who want better coffee don't just look at taste. They also look at origin, transparency, and the choices behind every bean.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently asked questions about what a coffee farmer really earns
What is the average income of a coffee farmer?
There is no fixed answer to this. The income of a coffee farmer varies by country, harvest, market structure, quality, and trading method. This is precisely why transparency is so important: without context, a standalone amount means little.
Is expensive coffee always fairer?
No. A high price can also result from marketing, branding, packaging, or retail margin. Without traceability and transparency, it remains difficult to assess what is truly happening at the source.
Are quality marks enough to call coffee fair?
Certifications can help as a starting point, but they don't always tell the whole story. They don't replace true transparency regarding origin, sourcing, and price distribution. This is also how Bunafide approaches it in their journey towards more openness.
Why does a coffee farmer often earn so little?
Because the farmer is at the beginning of a long chain. There are often multiple links between the origin and the consumer, and the visible value usually arises later in that chain.
What does Bunafide want to do differently?
Bunafide wants to work step-by-step towards more transparency, more direct sourcing, and a shorter, fairer chain. The brand is open about this: not everything is perfectly visible yet, but the process is being shared consciously and honestly.
Is cheap coffee always unfair?
Not necessarily. But a low price is a reason to look critically. Especially if it remains unclear where the coffee comes from and how the price is structured.
Does a coffee farmer get paid more if coffee is sold at a higher price?
Not automatically. A higher selling price does not automatically mean that more money flows back to the origin. That depends on how the chain is structured and how much transparency there is regarding prices and margins.
