Ireland chooses coffee over tea for their break, survey shows

Kenneth Fox

Coffee now reigns supreme as Ireland’s favourite break-time beverage, with Lyons and Nescafé the nation’s most-loved brands

A new survey by Codex Office Solution highlighted the pivotal role of tea and coffee breaks in the workplace, with coffee taking the lead as Ireland’s preferred beverage.

The study of 500 office workers shows how these small daily breaks contribute to workers’ well-being and productivity.

With 70 per cent of workers taking two or more tea/coffee breaks daily, for many these moments are an essential pause in the working day.

A striking 65 per cent of respondents rate tea/coffee breaks as “very important” for their wellbeing, and “somewhat important” for a further 23 per cent, demonstrating the power of a simple cup of coffee or tea to boost morale.

The Codex survey reveals that coffee is now the number one break-time beverage for 50 per cent of Irish workers, with tea unsurprisingly a close second on 37 per cent.

While herbal teas (4 per cent) and hot chocolate (3 per cent) lag, Lyons Tea dominates as Ireland’s favourite tea brand (32 per cent), narrowly edging out Barry’s Tea (31 per cent) and Lipton (8 per cent).

Among coffee lovers, Nescafe wears the crown with 31 per cent of the vote for preferred brands, followed by coffee pod (12 per cent) and espresso (8 per cent) brands.

Morning (9-11am) is the most popular time for breaks, with 76 per cent of workers taking time for a tea or coffee during this window.

Early afternoon (44 per cent) and late afternoon (41 per cent) are also key moments for workers to take a break and recharge. 1 in 6 respondents keep their beverage breaks brief at less than 5 minutes, while a majority (72 per cent) keep their breaks between 5-15 minutes, and 16 per cent admit to indulging in longer breaks.