The West really loves coffee, despite Utah’s peculiar relationship with java.
The big picture: Nationally, daily coffee-drinking among U.S. adults is at a high of more than 20 years, according to a recent National Coffee Association survey.
Zoom in: About 69% of adults in the West drank coffee in the past day, per NCA polling.
- That’s a 6% jump from 2020.
Flashback: In 2004, less than half of adults had coffee in the past day nationwide, per NCA polling.
The intrigue: Utah’s prominent religion, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, requires its members to abstain from coffee, along with alcohol, tea and tobacco.
- When Starbucks opened its first location in Provo, — home to the church-owned Brigham Young University — it made local and national headlines.
Yes, but: Attitudes towards coffee consumption among young Latter-day Saints are changing.
- Nearly 1 in 3 millennial members said avoiding coffee was “essential” to being a “good” Latter-day Saint, according to a 2018 survey.
- That’s compared to 52% of Baby Boomers and people from the Silent Generation who said it was “essential.”
Between the lines: Although drip coffee is the most popular way to prepare coffee nationally, consumption of espresso-based beverages has been growing.
- Lattes are the most popular in the U.S. — 18% of American adults drank one in the past week — followed by espresso shots and cappuccinos, NCA says.
