For the past year milk in Korea is often being bundled in 2-for-1 specials in the grocery stores. There’s a milk stockpile going on. And Starbucks has agreed to chip in and help out –on Mondays.
Times are tough for South Korea’s dairy farmers. The unseasonably warm winter has the cows producing more milk. Couple that with the declining rate of milk consumption and you’ve got a milk stockpile driving prices down across the country. Hurray for consumers, but bad news for the farmers.
According to The Korea Dairy Committee, the supply-demand discrepancy has reached its widest gap in 12 years with nearly 15,800 tons of milk in stock as of October last year.
True businesspeople patriots that they are, Starbucks Korea has decided to chip in and offer discounted Lattes on Mondays to help relieve the milk glut.
The campaign kicks off today and will continue through the end of June, with the company selling a tall-sized latte for 3,900 won, down from the regular price of 4,600 won.
Starbucks also hopes to raise 150 million won to help dairy farmers by giving them 100 won from each latte sold.
Starbucks said the move will increase its milk use by 1,500 tons.
“We hope this campaign will help relieve the pain of dairy farmers,” said Starbucks Coffee Korea CEO Lee Seock-koo.
Starbucks uses an estimated 18,500 tons of milk annually in Korea.
