Starbucks Plans to Launch Oleato Olive Oil Coffee in the Chinese Market

Yesterday, former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz revealed in a conversation with Neil Shen, Sequoia Global Managing Partner and Founding & Managing Partner of Sequoia China, that he plans to bring Starbucks' recently launched olive oil coffee Oleato - already rolled out in Italy, Japan, and the United States - to the Chinese market.

During the dialogue, Neil Shen observed that the coffee market keeps evolving: Coffee 1.0 was instant coffee, and Coffee 2.0 was specialty coffee. He then asked Howard what product would represent Coffee 3.0 - the symbol of our era.

Howard's answer: Starbucks' innovative beverage Oleato (olive oil + coffee). And just as in every interview with foreign media, he retold the inspirational story behind the drink...

In short, Howard visited Sicily, Italy last year and noticed the local habit of drinking extra virgin olive oil straight, for its health benefits. That inspired him to add olive oil to coffee. Back home, development began, and the product launched in Italy in late February this year, followed by the United States and Japan within the next two months.

The Risky Bet

For this one beverage, Howard essentially staked "Starbucks' future." He has claimed the product will revolutionize the entire coffee industry - the biggest reform since Starbucks was founded 40 years ago - and he remains unfailingly optimistic about its sales prospects.

Consumer Reality Check

The actual reception, however, has fallen well short of Howard's expectations. Across every market, complaints have outnumbered praise. The most common criticism: in iced coffee, the olive oil begins to congeal, forming a lard-like texture that coats the mouth and feels extremely greasy.

Worse, in the nearly three months since launch, many consumers have reported diarrhea after drinking it, with severe cases requiring hospital treatment. As one American nutritionist put it bluntly: this combination is not recommended!

Nutritional Concerns

On the olive-oil-plus-coffee pairing, registered dietitian Erin Palinski-Wade explains that it's not a sensible combination: the caffeine and acidity in coffee already stimulate the gastrointestinal tract, while olive oil acts as an intestinal lubricant - together, they can easily trigger diarrhea and other GI symptoms. A 16oz olive oil coffee contains up to 34 grams of fat, more than many people consume in an entire meal. That much oil is also unkind to anyone with a stomach condition. And because olive oil is liquid, it reaches the digestive tract faster than high-fat solid foods; without carbohydrates or fiber to buffer the effect, it can catch people off guard.

Compounding the problem, consumers who order olive oil coffee usually drink it on the go without accompanying meals - which is precisely why so many have reported digestive trouble. Drinking olive oil straight is normally done under professional guidance. The fact that olive oil is celebrated as one of the world's healthiest oils, rich in beneficial nutrients, doesn't mean its effect on the gut can be ignored. As a daily beverage for the general public, this combination simply isn't suitable.

Global Expansion Despite Feedback

And yet - far from heeding the feedback - Starbucks is accelerating the product's global rollout. After reading all this, many are presumably uneasy about its arrival in China...

Domestic netizens, when discussing the product's mixed reviews, have already filed it under the recently popular "dark coffee" series, alongside creations like century egg latte and octopus latte.

Despite the strong pushback from consumers in other countries, Starbucks remains committed to promoting Oleato in stores worldwide. All that's left is to watch how Chinese consumers respond.

Image source: Internet

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