Fairtrade coffee: - from berry to cup

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The main purpose of the thesis is to gain an understanding of the phenomenon Fairtrade coffee in depth and to describe the process behind it from the producer to the consumer i.e. “from berry to cup”. Furthermore, since the Fairtrade movement’s main objective is to alleviate global poverty and promote sustainability in developing countries, the thesis will also partly consider how Fairtrade coffee affects economic development and growth. This thesis has been written with an inductive research approach. The research strategy used is a case study strategy. A qualitative research approach has been used in interviews with middlemen, roasters, and merchandisers within the coffee market. This study concludes that the process of Fairtrade coffee differs from conventional coffee. The supply chain for Fairtrade coffee involves fewer actors compared to conventional coffee, which enables the actors to tie closer relationship to each other. Therefore, the network of Fairtrade coffee is able to offer benefits to its members, such as retaining a greater share of the value, and can be seen as a closed network where the certification works as a tool to exclude non-members. As the Fairtrade coffee is not sold on the commodity exchange, as the conventional coffee, it can be seen as working in a niche market. We were able to draw the conclusion that Fairtrade coffee is a differentiated product with regard to image. Furthermore, the Fairtrade organizations have built a common brand and logo that is associated with certain values. This study was not able to state anything about ...