Who Really Benefits from Fairtrade? An Analysis of Value Distribution in Fairtrade Coffee
- 1 December 2010
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in Globalizations
- Vol. 7 (4), 525-544
- https://doi.org/10.1080/14747731.2010.505018
Abstract
Fairtrade is a market-based approach to social and environmental development for producers through the use of standards and a price floor. This article analyzes the benefits and costs of Fairtrade coffee through an economic value chain approach. The study determines the economic income from Fairtrade coffee throughout the chain as well as exploring the benefits and consequences of Fairtrade for local producers in Nicaragua and Guatemala. Our analysis shows that consumer countries acquire the larger share of economic income, mainly because Fairtrade is positioned within the conventional market where large multinationals control the supply chain. The participation of large multinationals has led to increasing pressure and tough competition for the certified producer cooperatives in the Fairtrade market. On the consumer side, while consumer marketing narratives emphasize producer benefits of Fairtrade, our results demonstrate that its total benefits for primary producers is modest. El comercio equitativo es un enfoque con base en el mercado del desarrollo social y ambiental de los productores estableciendo estándares y un precio base. En este artículo se analizan los costos y los beneficios del comercio equitativo del café utilizando el enfoque de la cadena de valor económico. El estudio determina el ingreso económico del comercio equitativo del café de los diferentes eslabones de la cadena y explora las consecuencias y los beneficios que afectan los productores locales en Nicaragua y Guatemala. El análisis que realizamos muestra que los países consumidores obtienen una mayor proporción del ingreso económico obtenido, principalmente debido a que el comercio equitativo se encuentra ubicado dentro del mercado convencional que es controlado por las grandes multinacionales quienes controlan la cadena de la oferta. La participación de las grandes multinacionales genera una mayor presión y una dura competencia entre las cooperativas de productores certificados. Aunque a los consumidores de café de comercio equitativo se les presenta el argumento de mercadeo de que los pequeños productores obtienen un beneficio mayor, en realidad el resultado del análisis demuestra lo contrario, los productores obtienen un beneficio módico con respecto al beneficio total obtenido.Keywords
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