Interacting and evolving quality conventions

As one of the worlds most traded agricultural commodities, coffee constitutes a significant part of the overall economy and a major source of foreign exchange revenue for many developing countries. Re- sponding to the demand for sustainable and quality coffee, voluntary standards systems have emerged, such as Fairtrade or Organic, and the protection of the coffee origin through Geographical Indications (GIs). This research intends to look at the formal and informal processes by which value chain actors such as growers, traders and international buyers (e.g., roasters, brand owners, retailers, cafés) build, re-define and combine quality conventions of three selected voluntary standards (i.e. Fairtrade and Organic, GIs). Quality conventions are understood as social constructions and as outcomes of social processes and collective choice. This research specifically aims i) to grasp interactions and the combination of diverse voluntary standards and of informal quality conventions (e.g., rules of grower organizations or social norms shaping the perception of what a good coffee means); ii) to understand the evolution and re-definition of quality conventions over the last 30 years (after the dismantling of the ICA in 1989); and iii) to identify the differences in quality perceptions of the various value chain actors. Empirical cross-case and cross-country comparisons shall deliver in-depth insights into the redefinition of quality conventions for coffee and the role of different actors in these developments. The project endeavors to break new ground by strengthening the dynamic perspective on convention theory by combining it with the Institutional and Analysis Development (IAD) Framework from collective action theory (more specifically the dynamic action situation). The theory-based empirical research will provide much needed in-depth insights into the interacting and evolving quality conventions which were agreed upon between growers located in the South and international buyers situated in the North and which are based on the degree of collective choice, collaboration and on the forms of collective quality governance. Such research is much needed in view of the Sustainable Development Goals defined by the United Nations in 2015 and the recent economic crisis, where the adaptability of the rules of the game and inclusive conditions for the definition of quality are discussed with a new urgency.

History shows that during feudalism, colonialism or the industrial revolution, human beings considered themselves superior to others and prospered at the expense of others in different scales and geographies. This fact becomes clear when studying the governance across global coffee value chains. The research presented contributed to a more dynamic and innovative understanding in the field of governance of coffee chains. An analytic framework connecting quality attributes (i.e., physical, symbolic, in-person service), conventions (i.e., market, green) and value appropriation was designed. Different methodological approaches were used (i.e., cupping exercises between producers and roasters, ethnography). The study involved chain actors (i.e., producers and processors) in countries such as Colombia, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands or the United States and revealed how quality, as a coordination device based on social construction, is still defined by chain actors following a neocolonial perspective under acknowledged quality conventions. Value is increasingly embedded in the symbolic quality and in-person services of coffee hardly accrued by producers, but by roasters, cafés or retailers mainly located in core economies. The extent of quality understanding will depend on the processing stages along the chain, i.e., producers are able to dominate, regardless of whether they are female or male. The positions of women (but also of men and diverse people) linked to the management of resources and value chains, and their specific efforts to ensure, e.g., symbolic quality attributes further extend the conceptualization of quality and its links to intersectionality. Organized Coffee Research Talks offered a transdisciplinary approach to enrich the project. The Talks involved producers, roasters, researchers, students, etc. It comprised academic and non-academic presentations, and cupping exercises to evaluate quality. The first event resulted in a trip organized by the PI and roasters to visit the producers whose samples were cupped and a direct import of organic-certified coffee from Colombia by Austrian roasters. Those interactions showed the need to: i) build eye-level and collaborative relationships among chain actors to share, co-create knowledge, and yield a sense of fairness and humanity across global chains, and ii) acknowledge the role of social scientists as brokers beyond the mere study of social realities and publishing, having the opportunity to act as brokers/facilitators among diverse actors from different backgrounds, and geographies to promote a genuine debate and jointly find new ways of relating. These approaches are key to enhancing transformation from below and moving beyond the quality discourse. So, marginalized actors can achieve superior symbolic/in-person qualities and value addition, and govern more equitable chains. In a sense, these conventions artfully obscure the moral legitimacy of the powerful and influential chain actors who intentionally or by ignorance prevent the achievement of greater societal welfare or the common good.