What is a Kona Coffee Blend?

You may encounter a bag of Kona Coffee labeled a “blend”. Just what is that?

Kona Coffee is an exotic coffee, which because it is rare and hand-picked, commands a higher price than other coffees. Because of this, some distributors, or blenders as we call them, mix the Kona beans with inferior, foreign coffee to increase profits. They often either fail to tell you the actual percentage of Kona in the bag, or they imply that their coffee is “Kona Coffee” when perhaps 90% or more is actually not!

Hawaii is the only coffee-growing area in the world where foreign coffee is imported to be blended and that coffee must be fumigated in order to be brought in.

Restaurants serving “Kona Coffee” may not be aware that the coffee they are selling is not 100% Kona and the consumer may be paying a premium price for a non-premium product.

Consumers should look for specific indications that the product they are buying or being served is 100% Kona Coffee and not a blend. Companies and farms selling pure Kona are proud to prominently tell you they contain 100%. If the product does not say “100%” it isn’t and likely is 10% or less.