A coffee expert says while the price of a morning brew is expected to rise, it won’t increase by as much as some fear.

Wayne Fowler – on his third cup of coffee for the day – told 6PR Breakfast consumers tend not to notice small price increases given the prevalence of tap-and-pay technology.

“We’re price observers, in that we still have our coffee when the price goes up,” he told host Gareth Parker, also on his third cuppa for the morning.

“Coffee is about an experience… you know you can get a coffee for $1 a cup at a range of servos, or you can sit down at a cafe across from the ocean, and be comfortable and talk to your friends and use their wi-fi, that’s the sort of thing you’re paying for with your coffee.”

Fowler said it wasn’t a rise in the price of beans that drove up coffee prices.

“Businesses are feeling increased costs across all their range… rents, transport, electricity, wage costs… but the actual cost of coffee in a cup is not the most significant part of that cost, it’s the labour.”

Press PLAY below to hear more on why coffee prices might increase