Brazil Coffee Crop to Rise Less Than Forecast on Rain

By Carlos Caminada and Andre Soliani

Jan. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Coffee output in Brazil, the world's biggest producer of the commodity, will rise less than analysts expected after scant rainfall hindered flowering.

Production will rise to between 41.3 million and 44.2 million bags this year from 33.7 million bags in the previous May-to-October harvest, the Agriculture Ministry's stockpiles agency, known as Conab, said today in a report distributed in Brasilia.

Below-average rainfall from August to October in Minas Gerais state, which accounts for about half Brazil's output, prevented trees from flowering properly. Output will still rise from last year because Brazilian coffee trees entered the better- yielding half of a two-year cycle.


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Starbucks Restores Schultz; Shares Up Most Since 2006

By Peter Robison and Mary Jane Credeur

Jan. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Howard Schultz was peddling a unique idea when he turned a Seattle coffee-bean roaster into a chain of U.S. cafes called Starbucks Corp. Now he is returning to lead a company battered by the competitive landscape it created.

Investors responded by sending the shares up the most in almost two years in U.S. trading.

Starbucks trained customers to demand better-tasting coffee. In the process, it spawned thousands of mom-and-pop imitators and enticed even McDonald's Corp., the world's biggest restaurant company, to open coffee counters.

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You may have Norwegian wives to thank for your workday coffee break

by Dana Knight, Columnist

A caffeine jolt from a triple espresso at Starbucks got me wondering the other day: Why is the typical 10-minute relief from work called a coffee break?

Why not a chocolate milk break or an orange juice break? And what do people do on their coffee breaks besides consume caffeine?
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Nearly half of workers (49 percent) take at least one coffee break during the day, and 32 percent do so twice or more, according to a December survey by CareerBuilder.com.

Since all of you are sitting on the edges of your cubicle chairs waiting to find out everything there is to know about the coffee break, I will fill you in.

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McDonald's Coffee Bars to Take on Starbucks: WSJ

by Reuters

McDonald's is set to launch coffee bars with "baristas" serving cappuccinos and lattes, moving into direct competition with global coffee chain Starbucks, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

McDonald's will install coffee bars at its 14,000 U.S. stores, incorporating theatrics similar to Starbucks' counters, displaying espresso machines and having baristas prepare drinks, the report said.

The report, citing internal documents from 2007, said the move will add $1 billion to McDonald's annual sales of $21.6 billion. McDonald's will also sell smoothies and bottled beverages, it said.

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Starbucks Announces Strategic Initiatives

Starbucks Announces Strategic Initiatives to Increase Shareholder Value; Chairman Howard Schultz Returns as CEO

SEATTLE, Jan 07, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Board of Directors of Starbucks Coffee Company (NASDAQ:SBUX) today announced a series of initiatives aimed at driving shareholder value by refocusing the Company on providing customers with the distinctive Starbucks Experience and building on Starbucks legacy of innovation. To accomplish this objective, the Board has appointed Howard Schultz, chairman, to take on the additional role of chief executive officer, effective immediately, replacing Jim Donald, who is leaving the Company.

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