What is the Quality Tier of Illy Coffee Beans and How Does It Compare to Starbucks? A Ranking of Common Imported Coffee Bean Brands in China

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While domestic coffee brands in China still lack clear leadership, imported coffee beans continue to dominate the market. However, faced with numerous coffee brands, choosing the right one has become a challenge for everyone. This article won't discuss coffee bean varieties or instant coffee, but will introduce three of the most common and excellent imported coffee bean and coffee powder brands.

1. illy Coffee

illy Coffee was founded in Italy in 1933 and is a national treasure Italian coffee brand. It was also the first company to package and sell pre-ground coffee powder, while also selling roasted whole coffee beans.

In Italy, illy coffee is the leading brand used in the food service industry, with a 7.5% market share, while occupying 30.3% of the home market. Every day, 3 million cups of illy coffee are sold in Italy alone, with an astonishing 6 million cups sold globally.

Beyond Italy, illy has deep roots in Asian regions. Many veteran coffee professionals think of the illy coffee brand when mentioning coffee. Among imported coffee brands, Chinese consumers' familiarity with illy is undoubtedly No. 1.

2. Starbucks Coffee

Starbucks Coffee was founded in the United States in 1971 and is the world's most well-known chain coffee brand. It was also the company that promoted freshly ground coffee globally. Many Chinese people had their first cup of freshly ground coffee at Starbucks.

Starbucks focuses on providing consumers with freshly ground coffee, mainly selling espresso and drip coffee categories. All products use 100% roasted whole coffee beans, which are ground and extracted promptly before preparation to ensure each cup retains more of the coffee's original flavor and aroma.

Additionally, Starbucks also sells roasted whole coffee beans and provides grinding services when customers need them, grinding the beans to the appropriate coarseness for customers' brewing preferences.

3. LAVAZZA Coffee

Lavazza Coffee Company was founded in Italy in 1895. During both World Wars, Lavazza continued to provide coffee sales, making it stand out and dominate the Italian coffee market during turbulent times. This brand also has deep roots in Italy.

What truly brought Lavazza to the world stage was the company's adoption of vacuum packaging technology in the early 1960s, which preserved the freshness of ground coffee. This move not only rapidly expanded its original production line but also allowed the company to develop larger production facilities, continuously introduce different coffee flavors and other coffee preservation technologies, and export products worldwide.

Due to its strong preservation technology that allows coffee beans and coffee flavors to retain their characteristics for longer periods, supermarkets in many regions have stocked Lavazza's coffee powder and coffee beans. Therefore, Chinese consumers are also very familiar with the Lavazza brand.

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