How do you take your coffee?
Forget cream and sugar. This fall you may need to mix in a 10-percent price increase.
The owner of Marlowe's Coffee Services in Cornersburg, which distributes to regional businesses and restaurants, said he started facing this challenge in May of 2009.
But just recently, prices seemed to get a quick jolt of caffeine.
"The gradual increases have escalated in the last couple of months," said Richard Marlowe. "We just received word from 8 O'Clock coffee that they're going up 50 cents a pound in another week or two."
Rough weather in central America affected this year's supply, but that's not the only reason the cost of coffee is steaming up.
"It's become an investment hedge fund," said Marlowe. "Investors getting involved, gambling on coffee."
Tuesday, investors got burned by the biggest price drop in two years.
And while coffee drinkers have to filter price hikes, owners of Friends Roastery in Salem are aware that price changes also affect the premium coffee bean.
"What we're trying to do is reward the farmer, pay them a fair price, add transparency to the whole process," said Patricia Tinkler.
Tinkler said she hasn't raised the cost of a cup of coffee in three years.
"We generally have eaten most of the price increases because we understand the economic realities of our area," said Tinkler.
Price does fluctuate when you buy coffee by the pound.
