Sale of "fake coffee" worries Brazilian industry amid record prices for real beans

By Roberto Samora SÃO PAULO (Reuters) - The sale of products prepared with a "coffee flavor" but that are not coffee has been a concern for the Brazilian industry at a time when the powder from the real roasted and ground bean is being sold at high prices in supermarkets, in the wake of record prices on the global market. The so-called "fake coffee" or "cafake" is a "clear and evident attempt to cheat and deceive the consumer," said the executive director of the Brazilian Coffee Industry Association (Abic), Celírio Inácio da Silva, in an interview with Reuters. Abic recently identified the sale of coffee-flavored powder, which can be produced from husks, straw, leaves, sticks or any part of the plant except the coffee seed, in Bauru, in the interior of São Paulo. A product called Oficial do Brasil has the words "traditional coffee flavored drink" on its packaging. According to Silva, although there may be indications that the product is not roasted and ground coffee, there is ...