What is HS 090111?
HS 090111 covers green coffee beans — that is, coffee beans that have not been roasted or decaffeinated. These are the raw, unprocessed seeds of Coffea arabica or Coffea canephora (robusta), harvested from coffee cherries and prepared for export after wet or dry processing at origin. The classification sits within Chapter 09 of the Harmonized System (Spices, Coffee, Tea), and the six-digit code HS 090111 is used consistently across most trading nations, though importers should verify national tariff schedule extensions at the eight or ten-digit level.
End applications are broad: the roasting and processing industry is the dominant buyer, followed by instant coffee manufacturers who typically source high-volume robusta. Retail-grade specialty arabica flows into the premium retail coffee market and the foodservice and HoReCa channel, where single-origin provenance commands a price premium. Country of origin is commercially critical — it determines cup profile, eligibility for sustainability certifications such as Rainforest Alliance and Fair Trade, and tariff treatment under preferential trade agreements.
Top Sourcing Countries for Green Coffee Beans
Supply is heavily concentrated. Brazil dominates global exports of HS 090111 with a 35.1% market share, shipping into 119 import markets. Its scale delivers structural cost advantages and logistical reliability, making it the default volume origin for roasters worldwide. In 2024, US customs data recorded $1.90 billion in green coffee imports from Brazil, while Germany recorded $1.82 billion — confirming Brazil's centrality to both Atlantic trade corridors.
Vietnam holds an 11.8% share across 74 markets, supplying predominantly robusta for instant coffee and blending. Germany imported $638.6 million and Italy $475.0 million from Vietnam in 2024, reflecting European roaster demand for cost-competitive robusta as an arabica blend component. Colombia, at 10.2% share and active in 100 markets, commands a quality premium; US imports from Colombia reached $1.32 billion in 2024, driven by specialty and mainstream arabica demand.
- Brazil (35.1%): Volume, logistics scale, and price competitiveness. Weather events — particularly drought and frost — remain the primary supply shock risk.
- Vietnam (11.8%): Robusta benchmark. Cost-competitive but subject to phytosanitary scrutiny in EU markets.
- Colombia (10.2%): Premium arabica, strong FTA coverage, high buyer visibility.
- Indonesia (4.6%), Uganda (4.5%), Ethiopia (4.1%): Specialty and niche-origin supply. Ethiopia in particular is a key source of traceable single-origin arabica with strong sustainability certification penetration.
- Honduras (3.9%), Peru (3.4%): Central and South American arabica with growing market reach and GSP eligibility in key import markets.
Import Duty Rates and Trade Agreements
Green coffee beans attract a 0.0% MFN tariff across all EU member states — Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain, and others apply zero duty on HS 090111 regardless of origin. This materially lowers the barrier to origin diversification for European buyers; the landed cost differential between origins is driven by freight, quality premiums, and compliance costs rather than tariff exposure.
In the United States, preferential treatment under GSP and bilateral arrangements benefits origins including Colombia, Honduras, Peru, Uganda, and Ethiopia, reinforcing their cost position relative to non-preference suppliers. Procurement teams should verify current GSP eligibility status at the HTS 10-digit level and confirm certificate of origin documentation requirements with their customs broker, particularly given periodic GSP programme reviews.
Cost Drivers and Price Outlook
The ICE Futures C contract (arabica) is the primary pricing reference for HS 090111 arabica, while robusta trades on the London ICE Robusta contract. Both are highly sensitive to weather events in Brazil and Vietnam — El Niño and La Niña cycles materially shift harvest yield expectations and drive speculative positioning. Currency fluctuations in producer countries, particularly the Brazilian real and Vietnamese dong, create additional FOB price volatility that procurement teams must hedge or contractually manage.
Freight rate volatility remains a live risk factor on key lanes including Santos–Hamburg and Ho Chi Minh City–Rotterdam. Phytosanitary compliance costs — particularly for shipments entering the EU — are rising as inspection regimes tighten ahead of EUDR implementation. These costs are not trivial and should be factored into total landed cost modelling.
Compliance and Sourcing Considerations
The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is the single most significant compliance development affecting HS 090111 trade flows in 2025. Mandatory from December 2025, EUDR requires importers placing green coffee on the EU market to conduct supply chain due diligence and submit geo-location data confirming that coffee was not produced on deforested land. This applies to all origins and all volumes. Non-compliance carries significant penalties and potential market exclusion.
Transshipment risk for green coffee is rated medium. Buyers sourcing from origins with less established documentary infrastructure should verify bill of lading authenticity and confirm that phytosanitary certificates reference the actual country of production. Mislabelling of origin is a known trade fraud vector in agricultural commodities and carries customs penalty exposure in the EU and US. Sustainability certifications (Rainforest Alliance, Fair Trade, UTZ) require independent audit trails and cannot be self-declared.
How to Source Green Coffee Beans Efficiently
Start with origin strategy before engaging suppliers. Define your quality specification — arabica versus robusta, screen size, moisture content, defect count — and map that against origins that consistently deliver to those parameters at scale. Brazil suits high-volume blending; Colombia and Ethiopia suit traceable specialty applications; Vietnam suits robusta-heavy instant or espresso blends.
Verify the following before contract execution: phytosanitary certificate issued by the national plant protection authority, certificate of origin (preferably EUR.1 or Form A for preference claims), EUDR due diligence documentation if importing into the EU, and sustainability certification chain-of-custody if marketing claims will be made at retail. Engage a licensed customs broker familiar with Chapter 09 classifications to confirm the correct national tariff subheading and duty treatment in your import market. Use historical customs trade flow data — such as that available through Logitality — to benchmark supplier pricing against actual market transaction values for HS 090111.
Get a free sourcing intelligence report for HS 090111 at Logitality.com