Consumers opting for coffee and tea while out and about in record numbers

Consumers are drinking record numbers of coffee and tea when they are away from home.

Sales surged 11 percent in 2011 “driven by the return of consumers to the restaurant industry, aggressive coffee and tea menu innovation, increased penetration of coffee and tea among restaurant units and menu price increases, according to “Coffee and Tea Foodservice Trends in the U.S.," a study from the market research firm Packaged Facts.

Interesting, the numbers of people who drink coffee or tea are nearly even. Some 173.5 million consumers drink tea and 183 million consumers drink coffee, according to the study.

"The Big Four" in this market include Dunkin Donuts, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, McDonald's and Starbucks. Each earns more than $1 billion.

Among major coffeehouse brands, the study said Tim Hortons was tops both in sales and because it “weathered the recession with sales growth of 7 percent during the 2008-2010 period.”

Consumers, meanwhile, are well aware that coffee prices have gone up. The average cost for a cup of coffee in a restaurant jumped 25 percent since 2007, with the largest increase at quick-service restaurants, according to the study.

The good news: “After rising to record levels in early 2011, coffee prices have begun to trend downward. Tea pricing stability may provide operators with higher margins than they receive for coffee, and, if history proves a barometer for the future, leave them less vulnerable to pricing volatility,” according to the study.