India coffee exports jump 27% on robusta and instant demand

India’s coffee exports jumped 26.6% to 1.74 lakh tonnes in January-April 2026, and the split inside that number tells the real supply story. Robusta did the heavy lifting, rising 36% to 85,168 tonnes, while instant coffee shipments climbed to 20,332 tonnes and instant re-exports surged to 38,169 tonnes.

That matters far beyond the export ledger. For roasters leaning on robusta for body, crema and price control, the stronger overseas pull could make it harder to source cheap, flexible lots in the months ahead. Espresso blends that depend on robusta for structure may feel the squeeze first. Instant buyers, meanwhile, are seeing a market where soluble coffee is moving hard enough to keep trade flows brisk and pricing firm.

The value side moved up with the volume. Export earnings in the four-month period rose to 936.57 crore from 757.07 crore a year earlier, while unit value realisation edged higher to 4,94,766 per tonne from 4,75,023 per tonne. Arabica went the other way, falling 58% to 30,589 tonnes from 72,479 tonnes, a sharp reminder that this export run is being driven by the cheaper, more industrial side of the coffee market.

The larger backdrop still points to tight but improving supply. India exported 3.82 lakh tonnes of coffee in calendar year 2025, and earnings rose 22.5% to $2,058.06 million even as volumes slipped from 2024. The Coffee Board of India’s post-blossom estimate for 2025-26 projects record output of 4,03,000 tonnes, including about 1,18,000 tonnes of arabica and more than 2,84,000 tonnes of robusta, with gains expected across Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

India remains the world’s seventh-largest coffee producer and fifth-largest exporter, with the European Union still the main export destination. Domestic consumption has also crept up, from 84,000 tonnes in 2012 to 91,000 tonnes in 2023, while official messaging has pushed a longer shift toward value-added coffee. A January 2025 government statement said exports had reached $1.29 billion in FY 2023-24, up from $719.42 million in 2020-21, with Italy, Belgium and Russia among the top buyers. For now, the export surge is not just a bigger number on paper. It is a signal that the beans most roasters and instant buyers rely on are still in demand, and that the next few months may be shaped as much by who is buying robusta as by how much India can grow.