The Greek coffee industry is on hold, in the midst of continuous revaluations of the raw material and the wholesale sale of coffee that reach or exceed 45%.
At the same time that the coffee shop market is moving in two gears after the return of VAT to 24% for on-site consumption from July 1 and the application of the reduced rate to 13% for take away and delivery services, the domestic industry is worried about the undefined landscape that is also taking shape in view of the famous EUDR.
“We don’t know what is going to happen if the increased purchase and import prices continue,” Tasos Yagoglou, president of the Hellenic Coffee Union (HEK), explains to OT. “The positive thing is that so far the coffee market in the organized retail trade, due to the intense competition, has not made price increases on the shelf. Coffee is available in supermarkets with 13% VAT,” he adds.
What finally happens in focus
“As an industry we may be on a wait-and-see even for the short-term future, but we don’t stop watching what’s happening in the catering business, which is also a large part of our own customer base,” explains Mr Yagoglou.
It is recalled that on June 20, the Ministry of National Economy and Finance announced that from 1/7 the reduced VAT rate (13%) remains on coffee, cocoa, tea and chamomile that constitute deliveries of goods (take away and delivery), with an estimated fiscal cost of 65 million per year, and returns to 24% only in served, in proportion to the rest of the non-alcoholic beverages, with an estimated saving of 43 million per year.
The president of the Greek Coffee Association, Tasos Yagoglou
The role of the EUDR
However, the development of the last month with the imposition of the due diligence regulation by the EU is “bell ringing”.
This is the EU’s new deforestation regulation, which requires companies that trade in cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soy and wood, as well as their derivatives, to conduct extensive value chain audits to ensure that goods do not originate from recent (after December 31, 2020) deforestation, forest degradation or violations of local environmental and social laws.
The regulation, known by the acronym EUDR, will take effect in December, and coffee importers have increased the pace of shipments recently, seeking to avoid problems later, the International Coffee Organization (ICO) said on Wednesday.
“The positive thing is that so far the coffee market in the organized retail trade, due to the intense competition, has not made price increases on the shelf. Coffee is available in supermarkets with 13% VAT”, Tasos Yagoglou, president of EEK, explains to OT.
In particular, the implementation date of the EUDR is from 30 December 2024 for all companies operating in the EU, except for micro and small enterprises, for which the implementation is from 30 June 2025.
“This certificate requires a large amount of data to prove compliance, while it also has a corresponding cost as the suppliers from abroad inform us, which however is not yet known”, points out the president of EEK. “Combined with EFK, we are forced to be in a waiting position. During this period within the Eurozone, they take care and procure more and more and larger quantities of coffee, in order to anticipate this certification. However, there is concern about what will happen from December, when demand may decrease, Mr. Yagoglou concludes.
Source: ot.gr
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