Coffee News Recap, 17 Oct: Cropster acquires Korean roasting platform Firescope, HostMilano takes place in Italy & other stories

Every Friday, Perfect Daily Grind rounds up the top coffee industry news from the week.

Editor’s note

HostMilano – one of the HoReCa industry’s most important global events – starts today, hosting the 25th World Barista Championship. All eyes will be on Milan to see who is crowned the winner at the milestone edition of the competition.

Looking more broadly, mergers and acquisitions have been reshaping the coffee industry over the last decade, and the trend continues. As part of an ongoing M&A strategy, Austria’s Cropster has acquired South Korea’s Firescope as it seeks greater access to the East Asian coffee market.

Firescope, which serves more than 3,000 roasters across South Korea, Japan and other Asian countries, will become Cropster’s new regional sales and support hub. The company’s self-service roasting platform will be integrated into Cropster’s software suite over the next year and made available to customers globally.

This move comes a year after investment firm Verdane acquired a majority stake in Cropster to accelerate its growth and product development.

From roasters to traders to software developers, the trend of acquisitions is accelerating in the coffee industry and shows no signs of slowing down.

A judge assesses a competitor at the World Barista Championship.

Industry news

Mon, 13 Oct – Brazil trader Timbro enters the coffee export market. The exporter plans an initial shipment of about 80,000 60kg bags and will start full physical operations for the 2025 crop year. It intends to use Dubai and US offices to target Asian and Middle Eastern buyers amid market volatility. (São Paulo, Brazil)

Mon, 13 Oct – Good Earth targets vacant Canadian Starbucks sites for expansion. The chain plans to acquire recently closed Starbucks stores nationwide, reviving a 2021 approach to convert vacated locations into Good Earth cafés and capture displaced footfall as Starbucks trims its Canada estate to speed outlet growth. (Calgary, Canada)

Tue, 14 Oct – Coffee boosts footfall at UK bakeries and sandwich shops. Lincoln & York’s latest report shows that 81% of consumers feel coffee quality impacts their bakery choice, and 68% recommend a bakery or sandwich shop based on the quality of the coffee alone. This growth is driven by younger customers, especially those aged 18 to 24, who typically spend £5 to £7 per visit. (London, UK)

Wed, 15 Oct – Café Amazon refocuses expansion into key markets. The Thai chain has grown to more than 5,000 outlets, sold 107 million cups in Q2 2025, and is scaling an Ayutthaya hub for roasting, bakery, and training. It is also expanding a social employment programme to 430 outlets and moving on after a likely exit from Vietnam. (Bangkok, Thailand)

Thu, 16 Oct – Peet’s Coffee joins Woolrich x Target limited-time collection. The partnership introduces two exclusive coffee offerings: the Buffalo Check Blend, a medium roast with notes of chocolate-covered toffee and maple syrup, and Cold Brew Singles, a medium roast with notes of sweet blackberry and cocoa. (Berkeley, California, US)

Thu, 16 Oct – Coffee Enterprises launches CVA testing packages. The independent lab offers an SCA-aligned Coffee Value Assessment led by evolved Q graders, which combines physical, descriptive, and affective analyses with client-provided extrinsic data to verify quality, contract adherence, and consistency for buyers. (Hinesburg, Vermont, US)

Fri, 17 Oct – Chobani raises US$640mn in latest funding round. Earlier this year, the company (now valued at US$20bn) said it would invest US$1.2 billion in building its third US dairy processing plant in New York and a US$500 million expansion plan in Idaho. (New York City, New York, US)

Businesses for sale

Tue, 14 Oct – FreshBrew acquires White Coffee’s licensed branded coffee portfolio. Houston-based FreshBrew acquired White Coffee’s branded-licensed division, securing multiple licences and in-house roasting, grinding and distribution. Output capacity will expand to about 150,000 lbs per day, and White Coffee executives are joining FreshBrew to grow its retail division. (Houston, Texas, US)

Fri, 17 Oct – Carlyle and Boyu lead bids for Starbucks China. Sources report that the sale process has advanced to preferred bidders for a majority stake, with the entire China business valued at nearly US$4bn. Starbucks is likely to retain a minority stake while royalty arrangements remain under negotiation. (Shanghai, China)

La Marzocco Victorinox espresso machine and barista tool.

New launch

Tue, 14 Oct – La Marzocco and Victorinox partner to launch Barista Tool. The all-steel, multi-function barista tool pairs Victorinox blade quality with La Marzocco branding, featuring two blades, a corkscrew, several screwdrivers, a coffee spatula, a steam wand nozzle remover, and more. The collaboration also includes four exclusive La Marzocco Victorinox co-branded espresso machines. (Florence, Italy)

Wed, 15 Oct – OutIn and Kruve launch barista gift set giveaway. The collaboration between portable espresso maker brand OutIn and sensory glassware specialist Kruve offers followers a chance to win a premium coffee set designed to elevate on-the-go brewing rituals.

Thu, 16 Oct – Panera tests new specialty coffee beverages. A 12-week pilot from 15 Oct to 6 Jan will trial four fruit-infused Frescas and caffeinated Energy Refreshers across 65 bakery-cafés in Baltimore, Nashville, and the Mobile-Pensacola area, at both franchised and company-owned sites. (St. Louis, Missouri, US)

Thu, 16 Oct – Schaerer unveils its Best Foam milk system for Coffee Skye. The upgrade delivers barista-level milk foam via steam heating and a patented mixer, with adjustable milk temperatures and foam textures. Compact Skye suits low-traffic sites up to 180 cups per day, while the Twin Milk enables high-quality plant milk foam. (Zuchwil, Switzerland)

Thu, 16 Oct – Dalla Corte introduces Zero Plus at HostMilano. The new espresso machine features advanced temperature control, a five-step Digital Flow Regulation system, and its Independent Integrated Multiboiler platform. The DC System automations, like Steam Maestro, OCS, and GCS, serve both professional baristas and luxury home users. (Baranzate, Italy)

Thu, 16 Oct – JDE Peet’s unveils revamped innovation lab in Utrecht. The newly upgraded modular facility accelerates development across formats from single-serve to instant, supports sustainable packaging design and features energy-efficient systems, underpinning a €8mn investment in R&D scale. (Utrecht, Netherlands)

Thu, 16 Oct – Mazzer unveils new weight-based grinders at HostMil a no. The manufacturer will introduce the Kony g, Super Jolly g and Mini g grinders, each with built-in load cells and vibration filtering to ensure accurate dosing to counteract counter vibrations. The company will also debut the Mazzer Ready, a 75mm flat burr commercial grinder with double dosing features, and the ZZ burr line. (Venice, Italy)

Thu, 16 Oct – La Marzocco launches Modbar Tea and Pour Over at Out of the Box Milan 2025. The Modbar Tea portafilter and firmware will be available as a package for new Modbar purchases, or as a retrofit kit for existing installations. Featuring the same add-a-tap design used in the Modbar Espresso AV and Steam systems, the Pour Over system allows cafés to add a second Pour Over tap to double capacity. (Florence, Italy)

Fri, 17 Oct – Nuova Simonelli to unveil Appia Viva at HostMilano. Appia’s new version features a redesigned user interface, enhanced workflow automation, and energy-saving technology. The machine aims to elevate cup quality and streamline operations for medium-volume venues. (Belforte del Chienti, Italy)

Fri, 17 Oct – Latte Art Factory debuts BaristaOne Touch at HostMilano. The new super-automatic coffee machine pairs precision engineering with an award-winning milk-foam system to deliver consistent barista-quality drinks, multi-milk compatibility, hot and cold foam, and modular syrup and powder modules for high-volume cafés, hotels, and retail. (Milan, Italy)

Fri, 17 Oct – LaCimbali to reveal modular super-automatic machine at HostMilano. LaCimbali will showcase an expanded service ecosystem and new service-focused offerings, highlighting M40 with ADMS, M200 GT1 Turbosteam Cold Touch and Profile Touch, IoT connectivity, MUMAC Academy demos, and a MUMAC museum hub at Fieramilano Rho. (Milan, Italy)

Fri, 17 Oct – SEB Professional and WMF to launch new office coffee machines at HostMilano. The WMF Perfection Office, the WMF Elevation 10, and the WMF Peak 50 are showcased at the company’s booth. The brands will also host the Espresso Italiano Champion competition with La San Marco and IEI, live barista and latte art demonstrations, featuring WMF espresso NEXT Brand Ambassador Daniel Gerlach, and signature experiences at the Activation Space, and immersive brand zones. (Munich, Germany)

Milestone

Tue, 14 Oct – Espressolab opens 400th store in Kazakhstan. Now operating in 18 countries, the chain began in 2014 at Istanbul Bilgi University and has grown into a global specialty coffee brand. (Astana, Kazakhstan)

Wed, 15 Oct – 7 Brew hits 500-stand milestone in eight years. The company celebrated with a race-themed campaign at its Toms River opening and launched nine other stands across nine states the same day. (Toms River, New Jersey, US)

Trade & production

Wed, 15 Oct – Rwanda’s women coffee farmers harness collective power. Cooperatives are scaling training, better processing and market access to receive higher specialty premiums, diversify buyers and bolster climate resilience. At the same time, initiatives focus on traceability and female leadership to strengthen origin-to-export links. (Kigali, Rwanda)

Thu, 16 Oct – Uganda export earnings rise 55% as coffee shipments surge. Export revenues rose sharply in the quarter to June, driven by increased coffee shipments and higher global prices. As traders released stocks, this lifted foreign-exchange inflows and annual export totals. (Kampala, Uganda)

Fri, 17 Oct – Ethiopia’s coffee export revenues surge amid market diversification. First-quarter earnings reached US$762.75mn as July to September shipments totalled 113,542 tonnes (75% of target). Revenue rose 47%, exceeding projections by 23%, with Germany, Saudi Arabia, and Belgium as the top buyers, and Asian markets showing strong growth amid improved traceability. (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia)

Events & competitions

Mon, 13 Oct – Rancilio Specialty and Egro to showcase at HostMilano 2025. The brand will highlight modular systems, user interfaces and integrations for shop, micro roaster and retail settings, spotlighting the new Specialty line and new automation features under the Rancilio family. (Milan, Italy)

Tue, 14 Oct – IMF Roasters to showcase roasters at HostMilano. The company will exhibit high-capacity roasters with modular design, energy-recovery systems, IoT roast profiling, and remote telemetry, plus live demos and service briefings aimed at commercial roasters seeking throughput, consistency, and lower emissions. (Milan, Italy)

Wed, 15 Oct – The Barista League Pacific 2025 is set for 28 November. The competition at the New Zealand International Convention Centre will host regional barista teams competing in espresso, milk, and signature challenges. It will also feature a roasters village and trade partners, offering competition exposure and industry networking. (Auckland, New Zealand)

Wed, 15 Oct – LaCimbali previews Supera at NACS Show 2025. LaCimbali’s next-generation platform targets convenience and QSR operators with a modular design featuring up to four grinders, a 13″ HD touchscreen, heated metal group, dual-circuit milk module, automatic wash cycle, and customisable self-service or staffed workflows. (Chicago, Illinois, US)

Wed, 15 Oct – Sustainable Harvest concludes 20th Let’s Talk Coffee in Lima. The 2025 edition gathered producers, roasters, and industry experts to discuss climate impacts, financing, and transparency in coffee. Highlights included Dr Aaron Davis’s keynote on arabica’s future, Blue Bottle-led species tastings, and Sustainable Harvest’s public financial disclosure. (Lima, Peru)

Thu, 16 Oct – World Coffee Innovation Summit 2025 set for 9 to 11 December. The event gathers coffee technology providers, roasters, and industry leaders to showcase sustainability, intelligent machines, novel brewing formats, and scalable innovations through demos, panels, and networking aimed at accelerating commercial adoption. (London, UK)

Fri, 17 Oct – Ceado highlights flavour innovation at HostMilano. The manufacturer is presenting new grinder designs emphasising extraction control, bespoke burr geometry, and stepless adjustments. These designs also include modular dosing, reduced retention, and connectivity options aimed at specialty cafés and roasters, with live demos and collaborative R&D showcases. (Milan, Italy)

Here are a few coffee news stories from previous weeks that you might find interesting. Take a look:

Tue, 7 Oct – SSP promotes George Antoniou to lead EEME operations. George Antoniou was promoted from managing director to CEO for Eastern Europe and the Middle East, overseeing nine markets and about 30 sites. He will focus on boosting returns after leading expansion into Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Bulgaria, covering Caffè Ritazza and other SSP brands. (London, UK)

Thu, 9 Oct – Saudi Arabia’s Barns to expand into Oman and the UAE. Franchise agreements will back mall and high street openings next year, focusing on retail, wholesale, and brand partnerships; Gulf expansion aims to scale the Saudi chain’s specialty menu, support local suppliers and create jobs via franchise recruitment. (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)

Photo credits: La Marzocco

Want to keep up with current affairs in the coffee industry? Check out last week’s coffee news stories and make sure to read the latest Coffee Intelligence News & Opinion piece about why Colombia is having a bumper crop year.

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