RT Article
T1 The Development of a Market for Sustainable Coffee in The Netherlands: Rethinking the Contribution of Fair Trade
JF Journal of business ethics
VO 113
IS 3
SP 461
OP 474
A1 Ingenbleek, Paul T. M.
A1 Reinders, Machiel J.
LA English
PB Springer Science + Business Media B. V
YR 2013
UL https://ixtheo.de/Record/1785647156
AB In recent years, researchers have observed the process of mainstreaming Fair Trade and the emergence of alternative sustainability standards in the coffee industry. The underlying market dynamics that have contributed to these developments are, however, under-researched. Insight into these dynamics is important to understand how markets can develop to favor sustainability. This study examines the major developments in the market for certified coffee in the Netherlands. It finds that, in the creation of a market for sustainable coffee, decisions that significantly influence market creation are made in the lead companies (retailers and coffee roasters). These decisions are made possible by the availability of multiple systems of sustainability standards and by the existence of a small segment of loyal Fair Trade customers that ensured that sustainability remained an issue on the coffee market in the years before the market creation took-off. Fair Trade did not become the new rule in this process, but it became the benchmark against which companies could compare themselves and the basis upon which they built in adopting or developing new standards that would be more feasible in their business models.
K1 Certification
K1 Coffee
K1 Sustainable Development
K1 Fair Trade
K1 Standards
DO 10.1007/s10551-012-1316-4