Andhra's Araku Coffee in Manhattan Soon, Announces Anand Mahindra

Responding to a comment on his picture taken in snow-laden New York on Tuesday, where a user remarked that the staple Starbucks cup of coffee was missing in his hand, Mahindra replied that he was more than happy to replace Starbucks. He also dropped a hint that the first Araku Café could open in midtown Manhattan in New York by this summer, where he promised to share selfies with an Araku cup in hand.

Chandrababu Naidu has long stressed the importance of giving Araku global recognition. The Andhra Pradesh government has been in talks with public and private sector organizations to promote tribal and forest-based products, with Araku Coffee at the forefront. Plans include retail showrooms across India featuring Araku kiosks, a vision Naidu highlighted during World Tribal Day last year.

Cultivated across 2.58 lakh acres in 11 mandals of Paderu town in Visakhapatnam, Araku Coffee sustains the livelihoods of tribal communities. Its global journey has already begun, with a showcase at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where it highlighted the rich coffee heritage of Andhra Pradesh. Reports also suggest that the state government signed an MoU with Tata Consumer Products to brand the organic coffee for larger domestic and international markets, and that Starbucks may even introduce Araku Coffee to its menu.

Anand Mahindra is the Board Chairman for the Naandi Foundation, which is transforming the lives of tribal farmers through its Arakunomics and the Girijan Cooperative Corporation (GCC), by encouraging them to grow high-quality coffee. To make Araku Coffee a global brand, two outlets under the name Araku Cafe were opened in France, in the Marais district and the Pantheon in Paris. In addition, there are outlets in Bengaluru & Mumbai operating as well. Araku Coffee outlets by the GCC were also opened in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly building and the Parliament building last year.