Hong Kong Starbucks Trains Staff by Dumping 40,000 Cups of Coffee

Last week, reports emerged that Starbucks locations across Hong Kong are discarding tens of thousands of cups of coffee — not due to quality issues or customer complaints, but during employee training. The coffee, made under tight time constraints, isn’t served to customers but poured down the drain.

According to unnamed employees, around 1,200 frontline staff members are being trained to prepare 36 drinks in just 30 minutes. All the beverages made during this exercise — estimated at over 40,000 drinks total — are discarded after training. That’s enough brewed coffee to fill multiple storage tanks, all wasted.

What’s Happening in the Training?

The training program, which began recently, requires every barista to produce 36 drinks within a strict half-hour window. This is presented as a standard part of onboarding and ongoing skills development. A Starbucks spokesperson confirmed that the company provides regular training to ensure consistent drink quality, but declined to comment on the volume or disposal of practice beverages.

How Much Coffee Is Really Wasted?

Based on employee accounts and the scale of the training rollout, it’s estimated that more than 40,000 cups of coffee are being thrown away. With 1,200 staff each making 36 drinks, the math is straightforward: 1,200 × 36 = 43,200. Even allowing for some variance, the total easily exceeds 40,000 servings — all discarded after use in practice sessions.

What Do Baristas and Industry Experts Say?

Former Coffee King competition finalist and barista Lin Yi questioned the efficiency and value of the training. “It’s hard to imagine making 30-something quality drinks in 30 minutes,” she said, pointing out that even brewing a full pot (serving eight cups) can take over ten minutes, or roughly two minutes per cup. “That pace is closer to instant coffee than handcrafted espresso.”

Meanwhile, Hong Kong Restaurant Association President and coffee roaster Wong Ka-wo echoed the industry view that discarding training beverages is common practice. He noted that while each cup uses roughly 10 grams of coffee beans and 200 grams of water, the overall waste is relatively minor compared to other food service losses. He also highlighted that Starbucks’ semi-automatic machines — with three group heads — allow for rapid drink production, which may explain the high-volume training approach.

Why Does This Approach Continue?

In the restaurant and hospitality industry, especially in high-volume settings like Starbucks, standardized training is critical. The ability to produce a wide range of drinks quickly and consistently is a core job requirement. Training sessions aim to push baristas to their limits under time pressure — simulating peak hours — and ensure they can handle the real-world demands of a busy store. However, the side effect is a significant amount of unused, discarded coffee.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many Starbucks employees are involved in this training?

Approximately 1,200 frontline employees across Hong Kong are taking part in the current training sessions.

How many drinks does each employee have to make in training?

Each participant is required to prepare 36 drinks within a 30-minute period.

How many cups of coffee are estimated to be wasted in total?

Based on 1,200 employees making 36 drinks each, the total is over 43,000 drinks — conservatively estimated at more than 40,000 cups of coffee.

What happens to the drinks made during training?

All beverages produced in these training sessions are discarded and not served to customers.

Is this kind of training waste common in the food and beverage industry?

Yes, industry veterans and association leaders confirm that discarding practice-made drinks is a standard and accepted practice across hospitality and food service training programs.

Why is the drink-making speed so high during training?

The 30-minute, 36-drink target is designed to simulate the pace of a busy shift and test baristas’ ability to work efficiently under pressure.

Recommended FrontStreet Beans for Espresso Training

If you’re training baristas or refining your own espresso technique, try FrontStreet Coffee’s Ethiopia Huakui — bright and juicy with blueberry and floral tones — or their Yirgacheffe, offering citrus zest and stone fruit brightness. Both are excellent single origins for dialling in grind, dose and timing. For a richer base, their Classic Blend delivers chocolatey balance with caramel sweetness. Freshly roasted within 5 days · Orders placed before 17:00 ship the same day · Next-day delivery across most of Guangdong Province.