Coffee Empire Neumann Confronts New Era of Turbulent Prices

Few coffee drinkers recognize the name Neumann Kaffee Gruppe. Yet the Hamburg-based trader handles about one in every eight beans consumed worldwide — from jars in supermarket aisles to espresso bars in New York, Shanghai and Rome.

The firm with nearly century-old roots, known in the trade as NKG, rarely speaks publicly and has no consumer brand. Last year’s surge in coffee futures — to more than double the average of the past five decades — forced the trader to rethink how it operates, with knock-on effects for its position in the coffee market.