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The Impact of Certification on Smallholder Coffee Farmers in Kenya: The case of ‘UTZ’ certification program

Author

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  • Kamau, Mercy W.
  • Mose, Lawrence Obae
  • Fort, Ricardo
  • Ruben, Ruerd

Abstract

Increased awareness among coffee consumers of the impact of their consumption habits on the people and environment in coffee producing countries has resulted to implementation of certification programs in the coffee sector as an assurance of good practices in production and marketing of coffee. The UTZ certificate was the first to be introduced in the Kenyan coffee industry and this study provides the first quantitative assessment of its impact on smallholder farmers. The propensity score matching technique was used because it solves the ‘selection bias’ problem in assessment of the impact of development programs. The impact of the certification program differed between the two regions where it is being implemented probably due to the differences in bio-economic characteristics. Overall, the impact of the program ranges from higher coffee prices and coffee incomes, increased access to greater amounts of credit for agricultural purposes, increased incomes from other crop enterprises or off-farm activities, greater savings by households and increased investments on land. UTZ certification also resulted to better service provision by the cooperative societies. The perception by certified households that their economic situation has not changed may be attributed to the short period that the certification program has been in existence and also to the reference period (2008) which was a difficult year in Kenya due to the post election and economic crises.

Suggested Citation

  • Kamau, Mercy W. & Mose, Lawrence Obae & Fort, Ricardo & Ruben, Ruerd, 2010. "The Impact of Certification on Smallholder Coffee Farmers in Kenya: The case of ‘UTZ’ certification program," 2010 AAAE Third Conference/AEASA 48th Conference, September 19-23, 2010, Cape Town, South Africa 96651, African Association of Agricultural Economists (AAAE).
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:aaae10:96651
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.96651
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    Cited by:

    1. Dietz, Thomas & Auffenberg, Jennie & Estrella Chong, Andrea & Grabs, Janina & Kilian, Bernard, 2018. "The Voluntary Coffee Standard Index (VOCSI). Developing a Composite Index to Assess and Compare the Strength of Mainstream Voluntary Sustainability Standards in the Global Coffee Industry," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 72-87.
    2. Ibanez, Marcela & Blackmann, Allen, 2015. "Environmental and economic impacts of growing certified organic coffee in Colombia," GlobalFood Discussion Papers 197071, Georg-August-Universitaet Goettingen, GlobalFood, Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development.
    3. Estrella, Andrea & Navichoc, David & Kilian, Bernard & Dietz, Thomas, 2022. "Impact pathways of voluntary sustainability standards on smallholder coffee producers in Honduras: Price premiums, farm productivity, production costs, access to credit," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 27(C).
    4. Oya, Carlos & Schaefer, Florian & Skalidou, Dafni, 2018. "The effectiveness of agricultural certification in developing countries: A systematic review," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 282-312.

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    Keywords

    Crop Production/Industries;

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