THE 34-year high in coffee prices on the world markets has been caused not by a long-term upwards trends, but by a very clear spike which saw the price double in just 11 months from last June.

How seismic the change has been is highlighted by the relative stability of prices over the last 30 years.

In that time, it has consistently traded above 150¢ a pound on just three occasions, each lasting about a year – in 1985-86, 1994-95 and 1997-98.

Over those three decades, it has largely stayed within 50-150¢, and, in the last five years, has rarely strayed outside 100-150¢.

The price went above 150¢ on June 14, 2010, and has not been back below since, peaking at 310¢ cents in April and currently trading at just over 260¢.

Phil Schluter, of coffee traders Schluter, explained that the real effects of this are seen on the supermarket shelves and in the farmers’ pockets.

“At 140¢ a pound, where we started at, is $3,090 a metric tonne – that works out at 1.6p a cup,” he said. “The high was 310¢ a pound, which is about 3.5p a cup. But the cost of serving a cup of coffee is about 90% of the price.

“When we work out the price of coffee on a supermarket shelf, buying the green coffee [before it is roasted and packed] has gone from 57p for each bag on the shelf to £1.25.”

He is confident that the farmers are benefiting from the large price rises.

“Farmer prices have doubled,” he said. “Most farmers received about 70¢ cents out of 120.

“Today, it’s 150 out of 266¢.

“They are receiving a lower percentage [56% against 58%] because the cost of trading, insurance and so on is much higher than in the past.

“It’s good for farmers. The farmers we deal with are better off because they are subsistence farmers, they grow their own food.

“The only cash in their economy is spent on things like schooling, and that has not increased in price.”