International Coffee Day

International Coffee Day is an occasion that is used to promote and celebrate coffee as a beverage, with events now occurring in places across the world. The first official date was 1 October 2015, as agreed by the International Coffee Organization and was launched in Milan. This day is also used to promote fair trade coffee and to raise awareness for the plight of the coffee growers. On this day, many businesses offer free or discounted cups of coffee. Some businesses share coupons and special deals with their loyal followers via social networking. Some greeting card companies sell National Coffee Day greeting cards as well as free e-cards.

History

At a meeting on 3–7 March 2014, a decision was taken by the International Coffee Organization to launch the first official International Coffee Day in Milan as part of Expo 2015.

Various events have been held, called Coffee Day or National Coffee Day, with many of these on or around September 29.

The exact origin of International Coffee Day is unknown. An event was first promoted in Japan in 1983 by The All Japan Coffee Association (全日本コーヒー協会). In the United States "National Coffee Day" was mentioned publicly as early as 2005. The name "International Coffee Day" was first used by the Southern Food and Beverage Museum, which called a press conference on October 3, 2009 to celebrate it and to announce the first New Orleans Coffee Festival. It was promoted in China by the International Coffee Organization, first celebrated in 1997, and made into an annual celebration in early April 2001. Taiwan first celebrated International Coffee Day in 2009. Nepal first celebrated National Coffee Day on November 17, 2005. Indonesia, which first celebrated National Coffee Day on August 17, 2006, celebrates it on the same day as Indonesia's Independence Day.

Confused about which date is International Coffee Day?

Is it October or September? In July, the Executive Director of the International Coffee Organization (ICO), officially announced that 75 Member States of the ICO and dozens of coffee associations from around the world had joined forces to celebrate the first official International Coffee Day on 1 October 2015.

International Coffee Day is a celebration of the coffee sector’s diversity, quality and passion. It is an opportunity for coffee lovers to share their love of the beverage and support the millions of farmers whose livelihoods depend on the aromatic crop.

Many countries around the world celebrate their own National Coffee Days at various times throughout the year. The USA, for example, celebrates on 29 September. Naturally, many have confused this date with that of International Coffee Day. That’s ok— every day is a good day for coffee, after all.

In 2014, the Member States of the International Coffee Organization (the full list is here) came together and partnered with dozens of associations around the world to create an official International Coffee Day for all countries to celebrate together. The idea was to have a single day where all countries in the world, both coffee-exporting and coffee importing, could celebrate together. It was decided that the official launch date would be 1 October 2015.

So, whether you’re celebrating on 29 September or 1 October, happy International Coffee Day! We hope you enjoy your coffee and think of the world’s coffee farmers who make every cup happen.