&category=Kingdom
Coffee Culture ‘Spreading’ in the Kingdom
K.S. Ramkumar, Arab News
A new coffee variety is being introduced as a summer beverage at Starbucks, Le Mall, Tahlia Street, Jeddah, on Sunday night. (AN photo)
JEDDAH, 29 May 2007 — Coffee consumption is growing across Saudi Arabia, a predominantly tea consuming country.
“Coffee outlets are growing by the day and they have become the residents’ third home, the first two being their own home and workplace,” Ghani Obeid, area manager of Starbucks for the Western Province, told Arab News on the sidelines of the introduction of summer beverages at a coffee tasting session here on Sunday night.
“The spread of coffee culture is also evident from an increasing number of coffee outlets that various establishments and brands are opening across the Kingdom,” he said. Starbucks alone has 24 outlets in Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah.
New coffee preparations from Indonesia and Papua New Guinea have been introduced as part of the summer beverages. Indonesia, one of the major coffee exporting countries in the world, has a strong and well-established coffee culture.
The United States is the largest consumer of coffee products, followed by Germany. However, Finland consumes the most coffee per head of population in the world today.
The cafe is an almost entirely North American and European trend, turning the serving of tea or coffee, sandwiches, pastries, and other light refreshments into an extremely profitable industry. “This is now growing across the Kingdom,” he said.
Starbucks also introduced a range of pastries and accessories including coffee mugs and tumblers. “Traditionally, the people in the Kingdom prefer tea, but the presence of chains like Starbucks have created a large and growing coffee culture in the Kingdom,” he said.
This summer, Starbucks has introduced two unique coffee blends that capture the essence of the South Pacific, Papua New Guinea Estate and Sulawesi. These featured coffees are available at all Starbucks locations across the Kingdom for a limited period during summer as drip coffee or as whole bean to brew at home and can be enjoyed iced as a refreshing treat or hot.
“Our summer launches from this region are perfect examples with captivating aromas and indulgent tastes that capture the essence of the South Pacific,” said Maan Kouly, senior operations manager, Starbucks Coffee Middle East.
“Wherever we operate in the world we are committed to working with coffee farmers to invest in social development projects that benefit the local people. Papua New Guinea is revered for its exceptional coffees and we are proud to play our part in ensuring the future and health of this important community,” Kouly added.
In addition to its summer launch, Starbucks is also introducing the Banana Frappuccino blended beverages favorite in two exciting new taste sensations: Banana Java Chip Frappuccino Blended Coffee and Banana Java Chip Chocolate Frappuccino Blended Cream.
