Bellwether Coffee has doubled the installed base of its Shop Roaster and grown its Green Coffee Marketplace to over 30 global coffees. This expansion comes as cafés increasingly adopt in-house roasting to enhance quality, margins, and branding. The company shipped more roasters in 2025 than in the prior five years combined.
Bellwether Coffee, based in Berkeley, California, announced on March 11, 2026, that it has doubled the installed base of its Shop Roaster amid a surge in cafés shifting to on-site roasting. The company attributes this growth to operators seeking better control over coffee programs, improved margins, and brand differentiation. In 2025, Bellwether shipped more roasters than in the previous five years together, serving customers in 40 U.S. states and 26 countries.
The Green Coffee Marketplace, launched initially with five coffees, now offers more than 30 varieties from regions including Latin America, East Africa, and Southeast Asia. Key origins include Costa Rica, Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Rwanda, Sumatra, and Tanzania, with Ecuador and El Salvador slated for soon addition. Customers can opt to source through Bellwether, independently, or a combination, alongside services like roast profiles and menu guidance.
"We offer everything cafes and coffee retailers need to start roasting—sourcing, roast profiles, menu guidance, packaging—but it's all optional," said Ricardo Lopez, Bellwether's founder and CEO. "Customers can use as much or as little as they want."
Examples highlight the benefits. Tony Daussat of Function Coffee Co. in the Dallas–Fort Worth area sold 100 bags in his first month, exceeding his yearly goal, and plans a new café opening this spring. Michael Safarov at Teremok Coffee and Desserts in Missouri saves $1,200 weekly by roasting Marketplace coffee in-house, attracting customers from nearby Starbucks. At Juliette's Cafe & Coffee Culture in Newport Beach, California, co-owners Juliette Chung and John Hughes integrated the roaster into a historic building. "We wanted to build a serious coffee program in a historic space," Hughes noted. "Bellwether gives us access to coffees that perform across espresso and pour-over. Our customers notice the quality—even our decaf gets rave reviews."
Operators switching to in-house roasting from wholesale typically cut costs by 30 to 50 percent and serve fresher coffee. "Freshly roasted coffee is better coffee," Lopez added. "But cafes, coffee shops and restaurants also like roasting in-house because it makes financial sense. They can create a better-tasting product and improve their margins at the same time."
Bellwether recently launched its European Marketplace and showcased the expanded offerings at New York Coffee Fest (March 8–10, booth #2726) and plans to exhibit at the Specialty Coffee Association's World of Coffee in San Diego (April 10-12, booth #1419).