It’s a Starbucks palooza in the news! BOGO deals and oleatos made from olive oil owned by former CEO Howard Schultz. Plus, researchers explore robusta’s potential in high-altitude conditions and more in the ‘is coffee good for you’ debate.
‘Starbucks BOGO Deals are Breaking Baristas Across the US’ – via SFGate
Starbucks relies on promotions and buy-one-get-one deals to lure in new customers. But while these deals are popular, they put immense pressure on staff—to the point where Starbucks workers are quitting rather than face hours of constant queues.
Workers told SFGate that the company will often not inform workers in advance that they’ll run a promotion, leaving stores understaffed and unprepared for the onslaught of deal-chasing customers.
One ex-barista and shift supervisor said that some days, 12 drink tickets will print out within one minute. “One issue was that there was no limit on the number of drink orders that customers could order, but the other was that his shop was chronically understaffed, and that multiple employees quit as a result of these flash deals,” writes Ariana Bindman.
Starbucks has heavily pushed drive-thru and app-based ordering, which now make up 70% of orders at company-operated stores in the US. But revenue is in a slump: the coffee giant’s sales fell 3% globally compared to the previous quarter, according to its most recent earnings report. Starbucks’ share price has fallen about 20% since the start of 2024.
Because of the promotions and staffing issues, baristas are dealing with increased verbal abuse from customers upset at waiting up to 30 minutes for an order. “I was called an idiot multiple times because I wasn’t going fast enough, and people would just talk about us in the lobby as if we couldn’t hear them,” Kayleighann Robertson, a barista in Kansas, told SFGate.
Starbucks told SFGate that it tries to provide notice of promotional days in advance. A representative said the brand has implemented a new protocol called Siren Craft System to streamline the production of iced drinks, the most popular BOGO drinks.
‘Researchers Explore High-Elevation Robusta as Arabica Replacement’ – via Daily Coffee News
Climate change has reduced the availability of suitable land for arabica coffee production. Now, researchers in Brazil are investigating whether high-elevation robusta can supplement potential lost harvests.
Arabica grows at higher altitudes than robusta and needs very specific climatic conditions to thrive. Therefore, it is much more vulnerable to shifting weather patterns than its more robust and low-growing relative.
Researchers are breeding more resilient arabica varieties in the search for solutions to combat climate change. Others are looking to adapt farming practices by encouraging agroforestry and regenerative agriculture.
But others have focused on robusta as a potential supplement to arabica. Scientists from the University of Florida conducted a five-year study in Brazil to determine whether robusta grown at higher altitudes could augment arabica harvests while still meeting expectations on flavor.
For the study, published in Crop Sciences, the researchers looked at robusta and arabica plants in three high-elevation locations in Brazil. They found that robusta, which usually grows at low elevations, is adaptable to higher altitudes and colder weather while still yielding fruit and maintaining quality.
According to the authors, the study presents “an emerging view on how [robusta] could be a valid alternative for climate-smart cultivars in a projected scenario of altered climatic conditions.”
‘Olive Farmer Howard Schultz Has One Big Customer’ – via Semafor
Remember the Oleato, Starbucks’ much-hyped olive oil latte from 2023? Then-CEO Howard Schultz was a big fan—in fact, he came up with the concept himself during a trip to Italy.
The company did no consumer research for the new drink, instead trusting Schultz’s instincts that it would “transform the coffee industry.” Reviews were mixed, to say the least.
In a press release announcing the new drink, Schultz mentioned Partanna, the olive oil supplier stores would use to make it. Schultz said he was “absolutely stunned at the unique flavor and texture created when the Partanna extra virgin olive oil was infused into Starbucks coffee.” Partanna was mentioned 18 times in that announcement.
Starbucks paid Partanna over $26 million between 2022 and 2023 to supply stores with the drink’s key ingredient. But, according to a report in Semafor, there might be more going on between these two companies.
According to Starbucks’ filings, “As of the end of fiscal year 2023, Mr. Schultz indirectly held an approximate 19% ownership interest in Partanna and served as a member of Partanna’s Board of Managers.” According to Semafor, Schultz met the fourth-generation owner of Partanna on a vacation to Sicily in 2022 and bought a stake in the company in late 2023.
Along with Schultz’s ownership stake, Semafor reports that the company “is run by a former Starbucks senior executive.” At the same time, “its chief marketing officer, chief administration officer, and supply-chain manager are all Starbucks alumni.”
While there’s no indication of illegality, Semafor calls the whole thing “a corporate governance mess.” Despite stepping down as CEO in March 2023, Schultz remains entangled with the company: he retains the role of chairman emeritus for life. He’s Starbucks’ single biggest individual investor with a stake worth $1.6 billion.
Schultz and Valor declined to provide comment for Semafor’s story, but a representative from Starbucks told Semafor that it put “strong governance process[es] in place” when establishing a business relationship with Partanna. “This included a thorough review of conflict of interest, including ensuring Howard had no role in business decisions related to the Partanna/United Olive Oil relationship.”
More News
‘Farms Small and Big Shine at 15th Hawaii Statewide Cupping Competition‘ – via Daily Coffee News
‘Starbucks Sales Tumble as Customers Reject High-Priced Coffee‘ – via CNN
‘Heavy Rains Devastate Coffee Farms in Karnataka, Impacting Hundreds of Growers’ – via News Karnataka
‘Roberto Linguanotto, Creator Of The Tiramisu, Has Passed Away‘ – via Sprudge
‘Snoop Dogg Expands His SWED Store Globally With His First Coffee Shop Opening In Amsterdam’ – via AfroTech
‘Listen Up: Girlsplaining is Growing, Coming to Bolivia, Peru and US’ – via Daily Coffee News
‘Costa Coffee Sends Team to Olympic Games‘ – via Global Coffee Report
‘La Niña’s Likely Return Will Undo Some of Past Year’s Crop Havoc‘ – via Bloomberg
Is Coffee Good For You?
We’ve been told coffee is good for our brains multiple times. Studies have shown that drinking coffee can help improve cognitive function and memory and could protect against neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s.
However, studies like these are never conclusive. This week, research presented at the 2024 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference found that drinking more than three cups of coffee daily is linked to more rapid cognitive decline over time.
The large study looked at the effects of various amounts of coffee and tea consumption on fluid intelligence, which researchers described as “a measure of cognitive functions including abstract reasoning, pattern recognition, and logical thinking,” according to Medscape.
Over nearly nine years of following participants, pulled from the UK Biobank biomedical database, those who drank more than three cups of coffee per day had the steepest decline in fluid intelligence. Those with moderate and zero consumption declined slower.
Study investigator Kelsey R. Sewel of the Advent Health Research Institute in Orlando, Florida, told Medscape that their findings show “that across this time period, moderate coffee consumption can serve as some kind of protective factor against cognitive decline.” Interestingly, results were flipped for tea drinkers: heavy tea consumers saw the slowest decline.
Sewell noted the study’s limitations—it was observational and relied on self-reported data. In general, Sewell recommended moderation: “It’s the old adage that too much of anything isn’t good. It’s all about balance, so moderate coffee consumption is okay but too much is probably not recommended.”
Beyond the Headlines
‘The Nightmare Facing the Starbucks CEO’ by Maria Heeter, Rhea Basarkar, and Gregory Meyer
‘Coffea Stenophylla Is Ready For A Closer Look’ by Victoria Brown
‘Coffee is Becoming a Luxury, and There’s No Escaping It’ by Erika Tulfo
