Transnational Private Regulation: Evidence from the Coffee Industry

What is it about?

Aims: The purpose of this paper is to analyse the self-coordination of private regulation and self-regulation schemes in food industry to promote sustainability. Study Design: This study uses sustainable development to achieve a common goal for the business and public sectors. Different steering mechanisms and diversification emerge even though there is a need to achieve cohesion among them. Methodology: The study uses different theoretical viewpoints of regulatory governance, club theory and positioning following the methodology of theory triangulation. These theories and cohesion mechanisms will be discussed when the sustainability standards are analysed. The analysis is based on the evaluation of the emergence, implementation and enforcement of the best-known certification schemes in the coffee industry. Place and Duration of Study: The empirical data of this study was collected in the international research project, ‘Transnational private regulation and system level innovations in global food value chains’ at the Turku University of Applied Sciences from 2011 to 2014. Results: Positioning among customers is a very important marketing approach when there are several competing certification schemes. The national aspects of consumer behaviour should be taken into account in standardization. The survey of Finnish consumers indicates that Food from Own Country, Nordic Ecolabel and Fairtrade were the best known sustainability labels in Finland. Conclusion: The study is valuable for those who want to improve private regulation throughout the global value chains.

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