Social-environmental certification in coffee production: the making of a sustainable coffee market

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this research is to identify the transformations caused by the market practices conducted by UTZ certification program in certified small coffee growers.

Theoretical framework: The Constructivist Market Studies (CMS) explain the economization of goods: interactions in the market generate actions by the actors that will imply how and while goods and services are economized in this same market. Understanding that markets cannot have all of its characteristics described, CMS’ focuses on understanding how markets perform, that is, how effective markets are in a given context. These interactions are caused by market practices performed by actors and market devices.

Method/design/approach: documentary research and semi-structured interviews were carried out with 13 certified growers of up to 50 hectares of area in a UTZ certification group coordinated by a private company, with technical assistance from a cooperative from Campos Gerais - MG. Content analysis was applied for processing obtained data.

Results and conclusion: both the producers and the certification Management Unit that support them carry out market and structuring practices, so that each one contributes to the formation of this market. The registration processes observed explain the transport of market practices of the same nature between these actors, while the structuring practices make these inscriptions visible in the context of analysis and catalyze the process of assimilation or dissociation from market practices. The results achieved in this research, from the focus on inscriptions, allowed an expansion of the theoretical model of Constructivist Market Studies. It was also possible to highlight the market practices carried out by other authors of the market practices conducted by UTZ, whose interactions were demonstrated through the translation and registration chains.

Research implications: The social contribution of this work was to highlight how the impacts of UTZ certification change the lives of small rural producers through the implementation of sustainable practices, promoting positive transformations in their properties. As for managerial contributions, the observation of the relationship between certification, Management Unit and Producer in the organizational perspective of a certification group stands out, expanding the understanding of the functioning of this certification fulfilment system for the group's performance as an independent actor. As a theoretical contribution, this article expanded the systematization of Inscriptions in the process of assimilating Market Practices of the same nature in the context of Constructivist Market Studies.

Originality/value: It was possible to expand the theoretical model of analysis proposed by integrating Inscriptions and coordination relationships as important integrating elements to understand how transformation movements actually occur, building the performativity of an analyzed market.