Coffee Heists Are on the Rise—Are Our Beloved Beans at Risk?

If you think your morning coffee addiction is expensive now, just wait. A new kind of crime spree is brewing in the U.S., and it's targeting one of our most cherished daily rituals—coffee.

Organized criminal gangs are going to extreme lengths to hijack entire truckloads of coffee beans, exploiting record-high prices. These thieves aren't just snatching a few bags of premium espresso; they’re posing as legitimate transport companies, tricking suppliers into handing over shipments worth up to $180,000 per truck. And once the coffee is in their hands? Poof—gone without a trace.

Why Is Coffee Being Stolen?

In February, coffee prices hit an all-time high in the U.S., with futures spiking 6% in a single day on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), crossing $4.30 per pound. The demand for coffee keeps climbing, but erratic weather patterns—droughts followed by heavy rains in Brazil and Vietnam—are threatening future harvests. With supply chains struggling and prices soaring, thieves see coffee as liquid gold.

"There were dozens of thefts in the last year, something that would happen only rarely in the past," said Todd Costley, a logistics sales coordinator for Hartley Transportation, in an interview with Reuters. These heists aren’t random—criminal networks specifically target smaller importers by offering lower transportation rates, making their fake companies look like a great deal. Costley explained, "Once they get the coffee, they disappear."

Global Coffee Crime: Not a New Trend

While large-scale coffee theft is relatively new in the U.S., it's been happening for years in major coffee-producing countries. In Uganda, reports of bean theft spiked in 2024. In Kenya, thieves have been so precise in their break-ins that police suspect professional criminals. As one police officer in Nyeri County told Fair Planet in 2017, "The thefts happen so fast, and the thieves seem to know where exactly the berries are located and how to navigate their way through the stores."

Even Brazil and Vietnam—home to the world's biggest coffee farms—are seeing massive post-harvest thefts. In January alone, thieves in Brazil stole $230,000 worth of coffee from a single farm.

What This Means for Your Daily Cup

For now, coffee prices have dipped slightly to $4 per pound, but experts warn that continued supply issues could push them back up. According to the National Coffee Association, the number of American adults drinking coffee daily has jumped 37% between 2004 and 2024—and that demand isn’t slowing down.

So, should you be worried about coffee vanishing from shelves? Probably not. But expect higher prices and tighter supply chains as growers, importers, and logistics companies fight back against this new wave of coffee crime.

For now, savor every sip—your morning brew is more valuable than ever.