What is the coffee year?

The coffee year is the standard 12-month period used by the International Coffee Organisation (ICO) for statistical and trade reporting purposes: 1 October to 30 September. It's distinct from a calendar year (January to December) and was established to align with the majority of producing countries' harvest and export cycles.

Understanding the coffee year matters when reading ICO trade statistics, production data, or price reports - any figures described as covering a specific "coffee year" use this October-to-September window. A figure reported for coffee year 2023/24, for example, covers October 2023 through September 2024.

The ICO coffee year serves as a common reference point for the global coffee trade, allowing production, consumption, and export data from countries with different harvest calendars to be aggregated and compared on a consistent basis. It shouldn't be confused with a crop year, which is farm-level and varies by origin.