Do Private Sustainability Standards Contribute to Income Growth and Poverty Alleviation? A Comparison of Different Coffee Certification Schemes in Ethiopia

Fikadu Mitiku, Yann de Mey, Jan Nyssen and Miet Maertens
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Fikadu Mitiku: Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension, Jimma University College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, 307 Jimma, Ethiopia
Jan Nyssen: Department of Geography, Ghent University, 9000 Gent, Belgium

Sustainability, 2017, vol. 9, issue 2, 1-21

Abstract: Private sustainability standards are increasingly important in food trade with developing countries, but the implications for smallholder farmers are still poorly understood. We analyze the implications of different coffee certification schemes in Ethiopia using cross-sectional survey data, and regression and propensity-score-matching techniques. We find that: Rainforest Alliance (RA) and double Fairtrade-Organic (FT-Org) certifications are associated with higher incomes and reduced poverty, mainly because of higher prices; Fairtrade (FT) certification hardly affects welfare; and Organic (Org) certification reduces incomes, chiefly due to lower yields. Cooperative heterogeneity importantly shapes these results. Results imply that private standards may not always deliver what they promise to consumers.

Keywords: private standards; sustainability standards; global value chains; coffee certification; poverty impact; Ethiopia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (23)

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