22 May 2020 Whipped Dalgona craze is perking up sales of instant coffee

A popular lockdown fad – whipping up a foamy beverage at home – is helping drive sales of instant coffee.

The Dalgona coffee sensation has flooded social media as people forced into isolation attempt to make the creamy and energising concoction.

The recipe is simple: Whisk equal parts of instant coffee, sugar and hot water until they turn into a frothy whip, then spoon over iced milk.

Google Trends show searches for Dalgona coffee accelerated sharply from early March onwards.

Initial data point to a “massive rise” in demand for instant coffee, far higher than before the pandemic, says Jonny Forsyth, associate director for food and drink at Mintel. Consumers in lockdown began stockpiling instant coffee to give them energy and psychological comfort, while the product’s affordability makes it recession-resistant, he says.

Nestle SA, the world’s largest food and beverage company, says sales of instant coffee have increased in most markets as closures of restaurants and cafes boost home consumption and consumers are “rediscovering” the instant variety.

The company, which recently launched a Starbucks premium instant coffee range, also produces the popular brand Nescafe, which, it claims, makes up one out of every seven cups of coffee drunk in the world.

“Consumers are spending more time at home and trying new recipes, reproducing for themselves the experience they enjoy in restaurants and cafés,” said Philipp Navratil, global head of Beverage Strategic Business Units at Nestle.

“Dalgona coffee is just one example of the global trends we see in the coffee category.” That’s as instant coffee is adapted for making recipes in a convenient way, which could lead to a sustained increase in demand, he said.

Still, the instant coffee boom could fizzle as lockdowns ease across the world and consumers seek alternative ways to get their caffeine fix.

Source: www.thestar.com