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4 - Changing the Market

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2020

Janina Grabs
Affiliation:
ETH Zurich
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Summary

Chapter 4 examines the success of standards in changing prevailing market mechanisms in the conventional commodity chain, and providing reliable market incentives for behavior change. It first takes note that only two out of the seven standards under analysis have the clear aim of fundamentally changing pricing structures. Yet, during a period of mainstreaming and competition between sustainability initiatives, these standards have been overtaken by more industry–friendly alternatives that offer negotiation–based price premiums. Standards’ failure to limit participant entry through strict rule–setting and the existence of information asymmetry regarding buyers’ future purchasing patterns has led to a large oversupply of certified coffee, driving down such premiums. They are also likely to be absorbed by other supply chain actors. The chapter further shows the difficulty of isolating the market–based effects of market–driven regulatory governance from the multitude of simultaneous signals related to quality, origin, or timing. Price incentives trickling down to producers have thus substantially weakened, putting into question their motivation to comply with costly behavioral rules.

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Chapter
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Selling Sustainability Short?
The Private Governance of Labor and the Environment in the Coffee Sector
, pp. 102 - 124
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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  • Changing the Market
  • Janina Grabs
  • Book: Selling Sustainability Short?
  • Online publication: 28 April 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108875325.004
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  • Changing the Market
  • Janina Grabs
  • Book: Selling Sustainability Short?
  • Online publication: 28 April 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108875325.004
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Changing the Market
  • Janina Grabs
  • Book: Selling Sustainability Short?
  • Online publication: 28 April 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108875325.004
Available formats
×