Rising coffee prices draw more Japanese firms into greenhouse coffee farming

A sustained rise in global coffee bean prices, driven by climate-related drought and heatwaves that are cutting output in major producing regions, is prompting more Japanese companies to try greenhouse coffee cultivation. Nichibei United has planted more than 1,100 Typica trees across eight greenhouses, while Ishizuka Glass is running a three-year trial growing about 10 varieties using waste heat from its plant. Yamako Farm says it sells 10,000 seedlings a year, but estimates it needs investment of over 100 million yen to make the business profitable.