--- title: "Ready-to-Drink Coffee Rises Against the Trend: Nestlé, Starbucks, Uni-President and Other Giants Are All Making Moves in This Billion-Yuan Market" description: "China's ready-to-drink coffee market is growing rapidly, with consumption increasing 15%-20% annually. Major players like Nestlé, Starbucks, and Uni-President are innovating in technology, packaging, flavors, and functionality to capture market share, which is projected to reach 14.9 billion RMB by 2021." author: "小马达" publisher: "New Distribution" email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com" telephone: "+8615854817671" published: "2017-08-12" language: "en" canonical: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/ready-to-drink-coffee-rises-against-the-trend-nestle-starbucks-uni-presi-9d1f330e/" markdown: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/ready-to-drink-coffee-rises-against-the-trend-nestle-starbucks-uni-presi-9d1f330e.md" original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/5NWDOKoew-BrGNgfFAuqZA" translation: "https://xinjignxiao.com/zh/articles/%E5%8D%B3%E9%A5%AE%E5%92%96%E5%95%A1%E9%80%86%E5%8A%BF%E5%B4%9B%E8%B5%B7-%E9%9B%80%E5%B7%A2-%E6%98%9F%E5%B7%B4%E5%85%8B-%E7%BB%9F%E4%B8%80%E7%AD%89%E5%B7%A8%E5%A4%B4%E9%83%BD%E5%9C%A8%E5%8F%91%E5%8A%9B%E5%B8%83%E5%B1%80%E7%9A%84%E7%99%BE%E4%BA%BF%E7%BA%A7%E5%B8%82%E5%9C%BA-9d1f330e.md" attribution: "New Distribution — https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/ready-to-drink-coffee-rises-against-the-trend-nestle-starbucks-uni-presi-9d1f330e/" usage_policy: "https://xinjignxiao.com/ai-policy.txt" --- # Ready-to-Drink Coffee Rises Against the Trend: Nestlé, Starbucks, Uni-President and Other Giants Are All Making Moves in This Billion-Yuan Market > China's ready-to-drink coffee market is growing rapidly, with consumption increasing 15%-20% annually. Major players like Nestlé, Starbucks, and Uni-President are innovating in technology, packaging, flavors, and functionality to capture market share, which is projected to reach 14.9 billion RMB by 2021. __Source: FBIF Food & Beverage Innovation (ID: Foodlnnovation)__ _Author: Xiaomada_ _Editor: Anna Hu_ ## **China's Rapidly Growing Ready-to-Drink Coffee Market** According to the "2017-2021 China Coffee Industry Investment Analysis and Prospect Forecast Report" released by China Consulting Investment Network, China's coffee consumption is **growing at an annual rate of 15%-20%**, while the global average coffee consumption growth rate is only 2%. Although the average Chinese person consumes fewer than 5 cups of coffee per year, in first-tier cities like Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou, per capita annual coffee consumption is 20 cups. Meanwhile, in North American and European countries, per capita annual coffee consumption is about 400 cups, and in Japan, it's about 360 cups. In comparison, even China's first-tier cities lag behind other countries by more than a few cups, indicating significant room for growth. **According to Euromonitor, China's ready-to-drink coffee sales grew by 19% in 2016.** With the spread of coffee culture, accelerated urbanization, and faster pace of life, demand for coffee is increasing. **Euromonitor predicts that by 2021, China's ready-to-drink coffee market will reach 14.9 billion RMB.** ## **Giants Make Strong Moves in China's Coffee Market** In 2016, Nestlé Coffee accounted for 68% of China's total ready-to-drink coffee sales, making it the number one brand in market share. The vast Chinese ready-to-drink coffee market has attracted increasing attention from more brands. To cater to consumer demand, Wahaha launched Maoyuan Coffee, and Coca-Cola launched Georgia Coffee. Starbucks made strategic adjustments, partnering with Master Kong to launch new bottled Frappuccino. Uni-President also launched four new ready-to-drink coffees. **Companies are seizing market share through technological innovation, packaging innovation, flavor innovation, and functional innovation.** This article will explore these four aspects, showcasing new innovative products globally and the latest developments in the Chinese market. # **Four Major Innovation Strategies** ## **1. Technological Innovation: Product Upgrades and Addressing Consumer Pain Points** **Colorless Coffee** Perhaps you've seen coffee-colored water, but have you ever seen water-colored coffee? Colorless Coffee Image source: Instagram Davis and Adam from Slovakia invented the world's first water-colored coffee. After its launch, media in multiple countries reported on it, capturing the attention of many netizens. According to the UK's Evening Standard, the two brothers are coffee enthusiasts. They invented this coffee because, like many coffee lovers, they suffered from yellow teeth. To bid farewell to yellow teeth, the brothers spent three months developing **this low-calorie, colorless coffee with no stabilizers, no preservatives, no artificial flavors, and no sugar** — Clear Coffee. According to LiveScience, the number one factor causing yellow teeth is lifestyle, such as drinking coffee, tea, and smoking. The surface of teeth has enamel, which has many tiny pores. Coffee residue can get trapped in these pores. Over time, pigment accumulates, and teeth turn yellow. Compared to beverages and Starbucks coffees that often have hundreds of calories, this water-colored coffee has only 4 calories. Colorless Coffee price Image source: Colorless Coffee official website According to the official website, this coffee is made from purified water and Arabica coffee beans from Ethiopia. The brothers are unwilling to reveal the method used to decolorize the coffee while preserving its taste. The only known fact is that it uses the cold brew method. Although two bottles of Clear Coffee cost £5.99 (52.13 RMB), the price hasn't deterred consumers' enthusiasm for this novel coffee. Due to the unique technology, this coffee is not yet mass-produced or widely sold. The official website notes that due to high order volume and limited production, they are working hard to produce more. If you want to buy this coffee, you'll have to wait 3 to 4 weeks after ordering. **Cold Brew Coffee** Regular coffee is typically brewed with hot water. After grinding coffee beans into powder, hot water is poured over it, and a filter is used to produce a cup of hot coffee. Cold brew coffee, on the other hand, is made at low temperatures. Coffee grounds are steeped in cold water for 12 hours or more, then filtered to remove residue. Since the grounds don't undergo high-temperature reactions, cold brew coffee is significantly less acidic than hot drip coffee and has a stronger flavor. **Combining Cold Brew and Nitrogen – Nitrogen Cold Brew** Nitrogen coffee, as the name suggests, involves adding nitrogen to coffee. Injecting nitrogen into cold brew coffee under high pressure creates a creamy texture. Nitrogen affects the taste and mouthfeel of the coffee. Diana Aylsworth, director of Stumptown Cold Brew, explains, "Compared to regular cold brew, nitrogen coffee has a silkier mouthfeel."[12] This coffee not only features technological innovation but also eye-catching packaging. The packaging was designed by Jon Cooper, a young British designer. Nitrogen Cold Brew Coffee Image source: Pinterest ## **2. Packaging Innovation: Enhancing Quality, Fun, and Attractiveness** Current packaging comes in various styles and materials: transparent, opaque, Tetra Pak, glass bottles, plastic bottles. Attractive and fun packaging encourages consumer purchases. **Chameleon Cold Brew** Chameleon Cold Brew is a ready-to-drink coffee brand from Texas, USA. The packaging design comes from BexBrands, a company based in San Diego, USA. Chameleon Cold Brew series Image source: Google Images **Uni-President Lando** Lando Coffee is an Italian-style coffee launched by Uni-President for young Chinese consumers. Its creative inspiration comes from the Italian coffee pot. Lando Coffee Image source: Google Images ## **3. Flavor Innovation: Meeting Consumer Demand for Novel Tastes** In addition to common flavors like latte, mocha, vanilla, and caramel, many major domestic and international brands have launched unique flavors. **Stumptown Coffee** Stumptown Coffee is a specialty coffee brand from Portland, Oregon, USA. Founded in 1999, it is a leader in American specialty coffee. In 2017, Stumptown launched two new cold brew flavors: the one on the left is ginger citrus, and the one on the right is honey lemon. Ginger Citrus Coffee and Honey Lemon Coffee Image source: Stumptown Coffee official website **Austin Coffee** The famous coffee shop Picnik Austin launched a butter coffee. The inspiration for butter coffee comes from butter tea. The yellow bottle is mocha latte flavor, and the blue-green bottle is cappuccino flavor. The red bottle has the most unique flavor. Called Dirty Tea, its ingredients include coffee, maple syrup, butter, whey protein, soap tree extract, Indian spices, and more. Austin Coffee series Image source: Austin Coffee official website **Starbucks Coffee** In 2016, Starbucks launched a strawberry cheesecake-flavored Frappuccino. According to David Hanson, Vice President of Channel Development for Starbucks Asia Pacific, Starbucks will launch more seasonal ready-to-drink coffees tailored to Chinese consumers' tastes in the future. Starbucks seasonal limited edition – Strawberry Cheesecake Frappuccino Image source: Weibo **Never Coffee** Never Coffee is a Chinese brand making specialty coffee. Liu Zuofei, founder of Never Coffee, said, "Now when people mention flavored coffee, they think of latte, cappuccino, macchiato – they're all the same combination of coffee and milk, just with different amounts of milk or different syrups. Actually, black coffee, as a herbal beverage, can be paired with many categories, such as alcohol or fruit juice."[7] Never Coffee launched an iced lime coffee. The inspiration for this coffee comes from Portugal, where the combination of lime and coffee is a classic pairing. Iced Lime Coffee Image source: Never Coffee official website ## **4. Functional Innovation: New Formulas Catering to Consumer Health Needs** The growth of functional beverages has offset the decline in the carbonated beverage market. Does the increasing consumer pursuit of functional beverages signal that a wave of functional coffee is coming? **Coffee So Good** Coffee So Good is a ready-to-drink, cold-pressed coffee that can help regulate mood. Its raw materials are cashews and cashew milk. It comes in five flavors: original, lavender, mocha, dirty tea, and vanilla. According to Nutritional Outlook, founder Rita Katona said, "Cashew milk is rich in protein, iron, and magnesium. Magnesium helps relieve stress and tension and increases dopamine."[10] Coffee So Good series Image source: Google Images **FORTO Coffee** According to FORTO Coffee's official website, FORTO Coffee is USDA organic certified and fair trade certified. It's a cold brew coffee that provides double the energy of regular coffee. Forto Coffee series Image source: Forto official website **Jus by Julie** Jus by Julie is a probiotic cold brew coffee. According to the official website, this cold brew contains 1 billion CFU of probiotics, helping boost the immune and digestive systems and aiding in better absorption of trace elements and protein. Jus by Julie Coffee Image source: Jus by Julie ## **Comprehensive Innovation Coffee: A Masterpiece Combining Multiple Innovations** **Sunup Green Coffee** According to the official website, Sunup Coffee offers three flavors of ready-to-drink coffee: sugar-free, with cane sugar, and with stevia. Unlike other ready-to-drink coffees, Sunup Green Coffee is not roasted at high temperatures (450 degrees), contains no preservatives, and is made from hot water and organic raw coffee beans, tasting like tea. Because Sunup Green Coffee uses unroasted raw beans, it maximizes the retention of chlorogenic acid. Therefore, this ready-to-drink coffee contains a high amount of antioxidants (700 mg of polyphenols and chlorogenic acid) and 285 mg of caffeine. Chlorogenic acid has numerous benefits: it helps burn body fat, regulate blood pressure, and reduce the risk of diabetes and Alzheimer's disease.[16] In 2014, Cornell University research proved that chlorogenic acid can prevent vision deterioration, as well as blindness caused by glaucoma, aging, and diabetes.[17] Sunup Coffee series Image source: Sunup official website __Source: FBIF Food & Beverage Innovation (ID: Foodlnnovation), innovation, depth, driving the development of the food industry.__ -END- --- ## Copyright and AI use This article is sourced from New Distribution. Search, quotation, summarization, and model training are permitted, but every use must credit New Distribution and retain the canonical source URL. Contact: zhaobo258@gmail.com · +86 158 5481 7671