Hi Steve,

While we don’t publish FOB prices for every coffee, some of our Crown Jewel offerings or Farmgate coffees do include that information. For others, your trader can explain the factors behind the price, such as origin costs, exchange rates, and shipping. We try to share as much detail as possible when you reach out.

On pricing trends: some pandemic-related disruptions, like container shortages, have eased. But other pressures remain: tariffs, geopolitical instability, rising costs at origin, climate change, labor shortages, and a highly volatile C market all impact pricing. Even when some costs drop, we’re often fulfilling contracts negotiated when prices were higher, so reductions take time to appear. It would be overwhelming for both our team and customers if we alerted you every time a price was changed. That said, when we can lower a price, we do. It’s in our best interest to move coffee quickly, and our success depends on yours.

If you’d like to discuss specific coffees or contracts, please reach out to your trader.

I wonder how you measure humidity levels of the coffee. Illy I know is quite obsessive on this point; a batch measurement may read, say, 11% but doesn’t tell you much about the spread of individual beans. I have a PPT they showed in Colombia, insisting that they prefer a narrow range of individual bean RH% but that poor drying will lead to a broad range. They prefer the Guardiola method of mechanical drying for instance.

I wonder too if storage in ziplocks might help even out the range, as drier beans absorb humidity from moister ones.

All this does is drive up already high coffee prices, push small wholesalers and roasters out of business, and raise the cost of your morning latte. There needs to be louder and more consistent protest against tariffs on any good that doesn’t have a U.S.-based alternative. This isn’t protecting anything — it’s just hurting small business.

Thank you for your thoughtful comment and for highlighting important distinctions in the tariff structure. You’re right that not all coffee-producing countries are facing reciprocal tariffs. That said, it’s important to note that all the countries Royal currently imports from are now subject to a 10% tariff, with the sole exception of Mexico.

Our goal was to provide a clear overview of how these changes are impacting our business and our customers, but we agree that more detail is always helpful—especially in a landscape that continues to evolve.

Thanks for reading. To clarify: we encourage everyone to vote in 2026, regardless of where you stand on tariff policy (or anything else, really). Our note was meant to emphasize civic engagement, especially on issues that directly affect small businesses, producers, and the specialty coffee community. Whether you agree or disagree with the current policy, your voice —and your vote — matters.