Germany Overtakes U.S. in Brazilian Coffee Imports Amid Tariff Fallout
March 1 - 2026
Coffee Geography Magazine
Germany has overtaken the United States to become the world’s largest importer of Brazilian coffee in 2025, a shift driven largely by trade policy disruptions in the U.S. According to an announcement by the Brazilian Coffee Exporters Association (Cecafé), Germany imported 5.4 million 60-kilogram bags of coffee last year, capturing a 13.5% share of Brazil’s total exports.
The United States, historically Brazil’s primary coffee customer, slipped to second place with imports totaling 5.3 million bags. This marks a steep 33% decline for the U.S. compared to the previous year.
Márcio Ferreira, head of Cecafé, attributed the decline directly to temporary tariffs imposed by the U.S. administration. Ferreira noted that shipments to the U.S. plummeted by 55% during the period from early August to late November, when steep tariffs—reaching up to 50%—were applied to all Brazilian coffee varieties. The tariffs were imposed on a range of Brazilian products in a political dispute following criminal proceedings against former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, a political ally of Trump. (Bolsonaro has since been convicted and is serving a prison sentence of more than 27 years for attempting a coup.)
Germany’s Pivotal Role: From Green Coffee Hub to Roasted Exporter
While Germany’s position as the top buyer of Brazilian beans highlights its massive appetite for coffee, it only tells half the story. The country’s dominance is not just about consumption, but its role as Europe’s primary coffee logistics and processing hub.
A Gateway for Green Coffee
Germany has long been the gateway for coffee entering the European Union. The ports of Hamburg and Bremen serve as critical entry points, housing vast warehouses where green coffee from Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, and other origins is stored, graded, and traded. This infrastructure, combined with decades of expertise in commodity trading and quality assessment, allows Germany to import far more coffee than it consumes domestically. The 5.4 million bags from Brazil feed into a sophisticated supply chain that serves the entire continent.
The Export Powerhouse: Processed Coffee
A significant portion of the green coffee imported by Germany is not brewed domestically; it is roasted and processed for re-export. Germany is one of the world’s leading exporters of roasted coffee, supplying neighboring European countries and markets further abroad. The country’s highly automated roasting industry adds significant value to the raw beans, turning them into consumer-ready products.
This dynamic means that while the U.S. imports green coffee primarily for its own vast consumer market, Germany imports to manufacture coffee for the region. Consequently, a fluctuation in Germany's import volume often signals shifts in European demand rather than just German drinking habits. By overtaking the U.S., Germany has reinforced its position as the central banker and processor of the European coffee market, leveraging its infrastructure to dominate both the import of raw materials and the export of the finished product.
Brazil’s Broader Market Dynamics
Despite the shuffle in top buyers, Brazil remains the undisputed king of coffee production. It is the only origin country exporting to more than 120 nations and accounts for over one-third of the global coffee market.
Brazil exported a total of 40 million bags of coffee last year, a roughly 20% decrease in volume from the previous year. Ferreira explained that weaker shipments were partly due to lower stockpiles following record exports the year before, compounded by weather-related crop losses. However, the financial outcome tells a different story: despite the lower volume, export revenues surged by 24% to a record $15.5 billion.
"The stronger global prices more than offset the volume decline," Ferreira noted, highlighting the market's tight supply and robust demand. Following Germany and the U.S., the list of major buyers includes Italy, Japan, and Belgium, rounding out the top destinations for Brazilian coffee.