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‘Fair trade’ coffee and the mitigation of local oligopsony power

Author

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  • Suphanit Piyapromdee
  • Russell Hillberry
  • Donald MacLaren

Abstract

In recent years, there has been considerable growth in ‘fair trade’ markets for several commodities, most notably coffee. We argue that coffee is grown under conditions that might well subject growers to the market power of downstream intermediaries (processors). Using an approach designed to evaluate the effects of state trading enterprises on trade and welfare, we develop an oligopsony model of intermediaries. In this model, fair-trade processors optimise a welfare function that includes the producer surplus of coffee growers. This concern for growers' welfare among some processing firms helps to alleviate the market power distortion. We calibrate the model to price data reported by a fair-trade organisation and consider the counterfactual removal of fair-trade behaviour by processors. As expected, the income of coffee growers (in aggregate) is reduced, though the effects are quite small.

Suggested Citation

  • Suphanit Piyapromdee & Russell Hillberry & Donald MacLaren, 2014. "‘Fair trade’ coffee and the mitigation of local oligopsony power," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 41(4), pages 537-559.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:erevae:v:41:y:2014:i:4:p:537-559.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/erae/jbt028
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    Cited by:

    1. Podhorsky, Andrea, 2015. "A positive analysis of Fairtrade certification," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 169-185.
    2. Mujawamariya, Gaudiose & Burger, Kees & D'Haese, Marijke F.C., 2012. "Behaviour and performance of traders in the gum arabic supply chain in Senegal: Investigating oligopsonistic myths," 2012 Conference, August 18-24, 2012, Foz do Iguacu, Brazil 126236, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    3. Kopp, Thomas & Bümmer, Bernhard, 2015. "Moving rubber to a better place - and extracting rents from credit constrained farmers along the way," EFForTS Discussion Paper Series 9, University of Goettingen, Collaborative Research Centre 990 "EFForTS, Ecological and Socioeconomic Functions of Tropical Lowland Rainforest Transformation Systems (Sumatra, Indonesia)".
    4. Alexandros Karakostas & Diogo M. De Souza Monteiro & Cosmos Adjei, 2025. "Double Moral Hazard in Contract Farming: An Experimental Analysis," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 76(3), pages 640-650, September.
    5. Kopp, Thomas & Brummer, Bernhard, 2015. "Traders and Credit Constrained Farmers: Market Power along Indonesian Rubber Value Chains," 2015 Conference, August 9-14, 2015, Milan, Italy 212012, International Association of Agricultural Economists.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F12 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Models of Trade with Imperfect Competition and Scale Economies; Fragmentation
    • F13 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade Policy; International Trade Organizations
    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • L21 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Business Objectives of the Firm

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