My friends may have heard me complain about this one before. I’m so dumbfounded that this is still a thing. And I know it’s not the worst problem in the world. But seriously why does it cost 20-40% more for a coffee when I want soy/oat milk.
Let’s do a quick back of the napkin calculation.
- 1l of cow milk is about R15.
- 1l of soy milk is about R25.
Ok so yeah fine that’s 66% more. But stay with me I’ll make a compelling argument. I promise. So there’s 150ml of milk in a cappuccino.
- 150ml of cow milk from above is R2.25
- 150ml of soy milk from above is R3.75
That’s still 66% more! Yeah I know how the ratios work. Or I think I do at least. Obviously the milk is not the only ingredient in a coffee. There’s the coffee, labour and the intangibles(this is how I get around thinking about accounting). Ok so let’s say for argument sake that all that costs R10 conservatively.
- R12.25 cost for a milk coffee.
- R13.75 cost for a soy milk coffee.
Ok so we’re at 12% now. But maybe I’m hedging my bet too much. Let’s lower the intangibles to R7.
- R9.25 cost for a milk coffee.
- R10.75 cost for a soy milk coffee.
So we’re at 16% more for a soy milk coffee. I know that 10-20% is not a lot(although it adds up and I’d donate it or set it on fire rather. In front of a coffee shop. Seriously). And it’s just coffee. And why don’t I just drink milk. Let me tell you.
- Even the small injustices matter. It feels wrong and coffee shops should feel bad.
- I want to reduce my dairy intake. My stomach doesn’t like it much and I don’t like what I’ve seen in dairy documentaries.
- They don’t even give you the dairy milk that they charged you for. I’ve asked.
- Why do I have to pay a tax for this. Of all things. I mean come on.
Rant over.
