Where Are Coffee Beans From and Why Did They Matter in Shanghai?

During Shanghai's COVID-19 outbreak in April 2022, supply shortages made everyday goods hard to obtain. One blogger traded the last coffee at home for a neighbor's canned meat, and the story spread online, with some asking whether beans could be swapped for vegetables and others debating whether the trade was worth it.

Coffee beans are grown across a belt of tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. The episode showed how deeply coffee is woven into daily habits for many residents, even when basic supplies are stretched. City officials said rice, flour, grain, oil and meat reserves were adequate, but distribution to doorsteps was slow.

During the COVID-19 outbreak in Shanghai, the shortage of supplies became a major problem for residents. A blogger traded the only coffee at home for a neighbor's canned meat, sparking heated discussion online. Some joked about whether coffee beans could be exchanged for vegetables, while others questioned whether it was worth it. This article records a coffee story from this special period and reminds everyone to cooperate with epidemic prevention and reduce contact. Meanwhile, Front Street Coffee continues to provide coffee enthusiasts with professional exchange and specialty bean information.

According to the announcement from the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission, from 0:00 to 24:00 on April 6, the city recorded 322 new locally confirmed COVID-19 cases and 19,660 asymptomatic infections. Among them, 15 confirmed cases were reclassified from previous asymptomatic infections, 12 confirmed cases and 19,027 asymptomatic infections were found during isolation and controlled management, and the remaining cases were found through screening of related at-risk populations. In addition, there were 7 new imported confirmed cases and 1 imported asymptomatic infection, all found under closed-loop management.

As of April 7, from 0:00 to 15:52, Shanghai recorded 322 new local confirmed cases, 19,661 asymptomatic infections, and 7 imported cases.

The outbreak plunged Shanghai into a predicament of supply shortages. In order to buy groceries, everyone brought out the clicking speed and luck they once used to grab classes in school, frantically tapping to pay... Those whose clicking speed really was not fast enough even resorted to using massage guns... Even after successful payment, you might not necessarily get the item you selected; in the end, it still depended on what was actually delivered, and then you had to apply for a refund.

In response to the supply shortage, the Vice Mayor of Shanghai said at today's press conference: At present, Shanghai's reserves of rice, flour, grain, oil, and meat are relatively sufficient, but due to epidemic prevention and control, there have been situations where daily necessities have difficulty reaching people's doorsteps. We are going all out to advance the guarantee work, striving to solve the problem of low procurement and distribution efficiency, and at the same time working to ensure that the vegetable packages distributed by each district achieve full coverage.

If some people managed to grab supplies, then others did not, especially meat products. So today a blogger posted:

So the blogger went to a neighbor and asked if there was anything to eat. At a time like this, you could not just take someone else's food for nothing, but at home there was only coffee that was presentable enough to offer... Originally, the blogger did not have much hope, but the result was unexpected.

Who could have thought that in such a tense moment, a bottle of coffee could be exchanged for the food one had been longing for? Faced with such a situation, one netizen said:

Then another netizen said: ...So it seems coffee beans can be used to exchange for meat and vegetables in the community? Then they also posted a picture:

This epidemic far exceeded people's imagination, so everyone had not prepared enough supplies to cope with the lockdown policy. Perhaps some friends may wonder: At a time like this, is it worth it? As long as both sides of the exchange feel it is worth it, then it is fine. He missed meat, and he missed coffee.

However, this is not recommended! At this time, everyone should still stay obediently at home, reduce contact, cooperate well with epidemic prevention work, follow arrangements, and let the epidemic be brought under control as soon as possible, so the virus can also recede as soon as possible!

Shanghai, stay strong!

All cities, stay strong!

Image source: Weibo

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.