Starbucks to open Coffee Innovation Park in China
Starbucks will invest approximately $130 million in China to open a roasting facility in 2022 as part of its new Coffee Innovation Park (CIP).
Starbucks will invest approximately $130 million in China to open a roasting facility in 2022 as part of its new Coffee Innovation Park (CIP). As Starbucks' largest manufacturing investment outside of the United States and its first in Asia, the CIP will incorporate a roasting plant, warehouse, and distribution center, creating highly skilled jobs and new career opportunities that will further drive smart and sustainable coffee manufacturing in China. The plant will serve as a key component of the company’s global roasting network. The infrastructure investment further deepens Starbucks' commitment to strengthen the specialty coffee industry in China, where it aims to have 6,000 stores by 2022.
Building on Starbucks sustainability announcement in January, the CIP will incorporate advancements in sustainable manufacturing, smart supply chain innovation, and technology to support the aspiration to deliver the most energy- and water-efficient roasting operations for Starbucks in the world, while minimizing waste. The new roasting plant facility will be designed with the intent to apply for U.S. Green Building Council LEED Platinum certification, as well as China’s Three Star Green Building standards.
The new CIP, wholly owned and operated by Starbucks, will source coffees from China and around the world directly from origin for processing, roasting, packaging, and distribution, for the first time in China. Construction of the CIP will begin later this year in the city of Kunshan, an hour from Shanghai.
The investment highlights the company’s ambition to further globalize its roasting network and reinforces Starbucks' strategic focus on the United States and China as its two lead growth markets. Currently, Starbucks operates six other roasting facilities—one in Amsterdam to support European markets, and five in the United States. The warehouse, roasting, and distribution capabilities of the CIP will lay a strong foundation for continued business growth and development in China.
Once in operation, the CIP will integrate green coffee bean warehouse management and processing, with plans to co-locate a highly automated and “intelligent” distribution center that will become the heart of Starbucks' distribution network in China. The facility also will serve as a training ground for coffee roasters and key roles across Starbucks coffee supply chain in China.