Coffee Roasters’ Sustainable Sourcing Decisions and Use of the Direct Trade Label

Andrew Gerard, Maria Claudia Lopez and Aaron M. McCright
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Andrew Gerard: Department of Community Sustainability, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
Maria Claudia Lopez: Department of Community Sustainability, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
Aaron M. McCright: Department of Sociology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 19, 1-19

Abstract: This paper analyzes motivations for coffee roasters to source directly from farmers and how roasters decide whether to use the Direct Trade sustainability label. Direct Trade is an uncertified label connoting an approach wherein roasters negotiate coffee price and quality with farmers without intermediaries, with purported farmer income benefits. We examine semi-structured interviews with 11 US roasters and three coffee stakeholders to identify motivations to source directly, provide customers sourcing information, and use or reject the Direct Trade label. We find that roasters directly source coffee primarily for quality reasons and communicate about sourcing because they believe customers would value coffee more if they understood their sustainable sourcing practices. However, the lack of a clear definition for the Direct Trade label, coffee roaster concerns about the label’s utility, and the threat of “free riders” disincentivizes label use. Without a shared label, customers face high costs for information about directly sourced coffee, which may limit the expansion of a sourcing practice that could benefit farmers.

Keywords: direct trade label; sustainability standards; certification; sourcing; sustainable coffee; free riding (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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