Bean counting

War in the Middle East is affecting the price of coffee. The consequences are unimaginable.

- MARC WILSON

Cast your mind back two decades and imagine, just imagine, the subtle joy of ordering a flat white that doesn't make your wallet squeak. Richard Corney, managing director of Wellington supplier and retailer Flight Coffee, wrote in The Post last month that the cost of a flat white at its Te Aro cafe has doubled, to $6.80, in 20 years.

And it's going to get worse. While climate change and operational costs have increased production costs in that time, shipping is another big contributor.

The war in the Middle East is affecting shipping around the world and pushing up costs.

How am I going to get my caffeine shot in the morning? Maybe I could pop a caffeine pill instead. Compare about 50 cents for a 100mg caffeine supplement with more than five bucks for a long black containing 120-150mg. No, a pill doesn't have the same experiential component.

I mention caffeine pills because the lead article in Vic Uni's Salient student newspaper describes a backlash over the students association's online promotion of caffeine pills to "keep students wide awake for a hard night's study".