Anger is brewing in Italy as the cost of an espresso coffee, as ordered by millions in cafes every morning, rises towards the unprecedented price of €1.50 (£1.25).
Italians are already facing across the board price rises for food and domestic bills amid a pandemic-driven increase in the price of energy and raw materials.
But a leap in the price of a cup of espresso — normally drunk in seconds while standing at the counter of café — or cappuccino has proved too much to bear.
“We are receiving numerous complaints denouncing the rise in prices of coffee,” said Furio Truzzi, head of the Italian consumer rights group Assoutenti.
The price of an espresso has risen this year from €1 to €1.10 in many cafés, while a cappuccino has risen from €1.40 to €1.50, Assoutenti said, as an estimated 76 per cent of Italy’s 160,000 cafés increase their prices.
The increase was driven by an 81 per cent rise in the price of coffee beans in Italy last year and a 30 per cent rise in the cost of sugar and cocoa, the group said.
Truzzi said that if the cost of ingredients continues to rise this year, the price of a cup of espresso would hit a record €1.50.
Adding in the cost of an Italian version of a croissant, known as a cornetto, which is commonly ordered at breakfast time in cafés, the total price for breakfast could rise by 42 per cent this year, Truzzi said.
“That transforms a daily ritual for 5.5 million Italians into a luxury reserved for the rich,” he said.
Dining and Cooking