Douwe Egberts coffee and Pickwick tea returning to Albert Heijn shelves

Douwe Egbert’s coffee and Pickwick’s tea products will soon be back on the shelves in Albert Heijn. The supermarket chain has been in talks with the company behind the brands, JDE Peet’s, about the purchasing prices. This led to weeks in which fewer or none of the products made by the company were being sold at the largest supermarket chain in the country.

Albert Heijn has said that they will now accept the significant rise in purchasing price. But the supermarket chain also promised to pay a part of the price increases themselves. By doing this, Albert Heijn wants to keep these products affordable for their customers.

All JDE products are now available online, and they expect the shelves to be stocked by the end of the week, the supermarket chain said.

Albert Heijn would not say how much the purchasing price for coffee and tea had increased by and how significant the price increases will be for customers. "We will not make any further substantive statements about the discussions and agreements with our suppliers," said a spokesperson.

Jumbo and Picnic reported last week that products by brands like Douwe Egbert’s, Senseo, and Pickwick would be returning to the shelves. They will also have to pay higher prices to JDE Peet’s. According to Picnic CEO Michiel Muller, the negotiations with the manufacturer did not produce the desired result.

JDE Peet’s recently said that price increases were necessary because the prices of coffee beans had risen sharply. “Brazil, the largest coffee manufacturer in the world, has suffered with intense droughts since 2023. This has led to smaller harvests and dwindling supplies. This scarcity has pushed the global coffee prices to almost record heights,” said the manufacturer.

However, Muller disagreed with these arguments. “You don't really think JDE Peet's pays the bargain price for coffee beans. They have long-term contracts with farmers,” he said to ANP last week.

The Picnic ceo said that the demand for JDE Peet’s products is high, which is why the supermarkets feel that they have to agree with the higher prices set by the manufacturer.