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This study reports on the extent to which sustainability initiatives in the cocoa, coffee and soy value chains have been scaled up by companies. We have investigated how the private sector can be further stimulated to engage in, sustain and increase their involvement in actions to increase the sustainability of commodity chains with links to the Netherlands. The report analyses the motives for companies to join sustainability initiatives and their reasons for not engaging. It concludes with several recommendations on how government and value-chain stakeholders could further stimulate the scaling up of sustainability initiatives

In the “Sustainable Coffee Project Peru”, relevant and well documented data has played an important role in supporting the learning processes of the Farmer Field Schools. This is illustrated here with three examples: a survey of the coffee farmers’ situation as a basis for developing the content of the curriculum for the FFSs, the development of field school leaflets to support the education process in FFSs, and the use of a field book in the evaluation and comparison of farmer practices as part of a Participatory Technology Development process

Item does not contain fulltext Certification of coffee producers is frequently suggested as a promising strategy for improving the position of smallholder farmers in the market. After the launch of the first Fairtrade label in 1988, several other standards have been promoted either by voluntary agencies (Utz-certified) or by private coffee companies. Each coffee label relies on different strategies for enhancing sustainable production and responsible trade. Coffee certification in East Africa is of a rather recent nature but has been rapidly expanding, representing currently 26 percent of the world's sustainable certified coffee supply. Marketing channels, cooperative organisation and household structures show notable differences between Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia. Empirical studies on the effects of standards for smallholders are scarce. This book intends to deepen our understanding on the role and functions of coffee certification regimes, based on three innovative approaches: (1) longitudinal field survey data capturing changes in coffee farming systems and effects on household welfare; (2) in-depth interviews and behavioural experiments regarding risk attitudes, trust and investments at cooperative level; and (3) detailed discourse analyses regarding gender roles and female bargaining power within coffee households. The chapters included in this book provide new and original evidence about the impact of coffee certification based on large-scale field surveys and in-depth interviews. 262 p.

Certification of coffee producers is frequently suggested as a promising strategy for improving the position of smallholder farmers in the market. After the launch of the first Fairtrade label in 1988, several other standards have been promoted either by voluntary agencies (Utz-certified) or by private coffee companies. Each coffee label relies on different strategies for enhancing sustainable production and responsible trade. Coffee certification in East Africa is of a rather recent nature but has been rapidly expanding, representing currently 26 percent of the world's sustainable certified coffee supply. Marketing channels, cooperative organisation and household structures show notable differences between Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia. Empirical studies on the effects of standards for smallholders are scarce. This book intends to deepen our understanding on the role and functions of coffee certification regimes, based on three innovative approaches: (1) longitudinal field survey data capturing changes in coffee farming systems and effects on household welfare; (2) in-depth interviews and behavioural experiments regarding risk attitudes, trust and investments at cooperative level; and (3) detailed discourse analyses regarding gender roles and female bargaining power within coffee households. The chapters included in this book provide new and original evidence about the impact of coffee certification based on large-scale field surveys and in-depth interviews.

To determine the amounts of the serum-cholesterol raising diterpenes cafestol and kahweol in coffee made with coffee pads and the Senseo coffee machine as opposed to filtered and unfiltered coffee. DESIGN: Observational. METHOD: In five cities in the Netherlands coffee was purchased in three major supermarkets resulting in a total of 30 samples of coffee pads. The levels of cafestol and kahweol were determined by gas chromatography. As controls, the diterpene levels in filtered and unfiltered coffee were also measured. RESULTS: Coffee prepared using coffee pads contained on average 0.76 mg/l cafestol (95% CI: 0.69-0.82) and 0.85 mg/l kahweol (95% CI: 0.77-0.94). Filtered coffee contained 0.76 mg/l cafestol (95% CI: 0.63-0.88) and 0.81 mg/l kahweol (95% CI: 0.63-0.99). Unfiltered coffee contained 72.5 mg/l cafestol (95% CI: 48.5-96.4) and 71.5 mg/l kahweol (95% CI: 45.0-98.1). CONCLUSION: Coffee prepared using coffee pads and the Senseo coffee machine contained minute levels of diterpenes comparable to those of filtered coffee. Its effect on serum-cholesterol levels is therefore likely to be negligible

Er zijn verschillende instanties die (niet-)systematische informatie verzamelen over de Nederlandse koffie- en cacaosectoren die bruikbaar is om het behalen van de doelstellingen van de intentieverklaringen in de koffie in cacaosectoren12 te meten: individuele bedrijven en sectororganisaties, publieke en private instellingen voor marktonderzoek. Volgens de Koninklijke Nederlandse Vereniging van Koffie en Thee (KNVKT) was het marktaandeel van duurzaam gecertificeerde koffie op de Nederlandse markt in 2012 40%. Dit gegeven zal systematisch en periodiek worden geactualiseerd op de website van de KNVKT. Andere informatie die de monitoring van de resultaten van de inspanningen van de sectoren in Nederland mogelijk zou kunnen maken, is echter beperkt door hoge kosten en complexiteit van de koffie- en cacaoketens. De sectoren worden gedomineerd door grote internationale bedrijven die in meerdere landen actief zijn. Voorts is er sprake van een grote differentiatie van soorten consumentenproducten, met name in de cacaosector. Adhocinformatie maakt slechts een enkele (grove) schatting voor een bepaalde periode mogelijk. Volgens deskundigen uit het cacaoverwerkingssegment was het aandeel gecertificeerde duurzame cacao in consumentenproducten die verkocht zijn op de Nederlandse markt in 2012 niet hoger dan 25%. Andere verzamelde (ad-hoc)informatie over de cacaomarkt geeft geen aanleiding om deze schatting te verwerpen. Het onderzoek naar koffiesector is verricht in 2012 met enkele relevante updates in 2013. Het onderzoek naar cacaosector is verricht in 2012 en 2013 met enkele relevante updates voor 2014.

Er zijn verschillende instanties die (niet-)systematische informatie verzamelen over de Nederlandse koffie- en cacaosectoren die bruikbaar is om het behalen van de doelstellingen van de intentieverklaringen in de koffie in cacaosectoren12 te meten: individuele bedrijven en sectororganisaties, publieke en private instellingen voor marktonderzoek. Volgens de Koninklijke Nederlandse Vereniging van Koffie en Thee (KNVKT) was het marktaandeel van duurzaam gecertificeerde koffie op de Nederlandse markt in 2012 40%. Dit gegeven zal systematisch en periodiek worden geactualiseerd op de website van de KNVKT. Andere informatie die de monitoring van de resultaten van de inspanningen van de sectoren in Nederland mogelijk zou kunnen maken, is echter beperkt door hoge kosten en complexiteit van de koffie- en cacaoketens. De sectoren worden gedomineerd door grote internationale bedrijven die in meerdere landen actief zijn. Voorts is er sprake van een grote differentiatie van soorten consumentenproducten, met name in de cacaosector. Adhocinformatie maakt slechts een enkele (grove) schatting voor een bepaalde periode mogelijk. Volgens deskundigen uit het cacaoverwerkingssegment was het aandeel gecertificeerde duurzame cacao in consumentenproducten die verkocht zijn op de Nederlandse markt in 2012 niet hoger dan 25%. Andere verzamelde (ad-hoc)informatie over de cacaomarkt geeft geen aanleiding om deze schatting te verwerpen. Het onderzoek naar koffiesector is verricht in 2012 met enkele relevante updates in 2013. Het onderzoek naar cacaosector is verricht in 2012 en 2013 met enkele relevante updates voor 2014.

Reactie met kanttekeningen op een eerder artikel in Spil 205/206 (2004, 4) van Van Kasteren: 'Afspraken over handel in agrarische producten zijn nodig', betreffende het instellen van goederenovereenkomsten

Keywords: Cooperation, contract arrangements, traders´ performance, market uncertainty, diversification, coffee, Mexico. The main aim of this thesis is to investigate the institutional environment prevailing in the Mexican coffee sector and its effect on the producers, traders and households. Specific topics we examine are the contract arrangements and trade performance, the factors influencing the growers´ willingness to join a cooperative, the effects of cooperation on price variability, the influence of cooperation on the growers’ welfare, and coffee producers’ response to the falling coffee price through their engagement in diversification activities. To accomplish the main objectives we have used primary and secondary data. We applied ordinarily least squares, logistic, probit and multivariate probit regressions in the analysis. The main findings indicate that farmers were better off under the quota system than they are under the free market. Results also indicate that being a roaster and selling cherry coffee negatively affects traders’ use of contracts, whereas being vertically integrated has a positive effect on contracting. On the other hand, selling cherry coffee, participating in a competitive environment and having contracts positively influence intermediaries’ performance. Other results show that some individual, family and farm factors, as well as variability of the coffee price at the municipal level favour cooperative affiliation; whereas housing conditions, the proportion of farmers in the municipality and the level of producers selling to intermediaries at the municipal level negatively affect prospects for cooperative membership. We discovered overall positive effects of cooperative participation on household welfare through an increase in the price and total coffee income; results also indicate that households responded to the low coffee price periods with an increase in diversification.

Keywords: Cooperation, contract arrangements, traders´ performance, market uncertainty, diversification, coffee, Mexico. The main aim of this thesis is to investigate the institutional environment prevailing in the Mexican coffee sector and its effect on the producers, traders and households. Specific topics we examine are the contract arrangements and trade performance, the factors influencing the growers´ willingness to join a cooperative, the effects of cooperation on price variability, the influence of cooperation on the growers’ welfare, and coffee producers’ response to the falling coffee price through their engagement in diversification activities. To accomplish the main objectives we have used primary and secondary data. We applied ordinarily least squares, logistic, probit and multivariate probit regressions in the analysis. The main findings indicate that farmers were better off under the quota system than they are under the free market. Results also indicate that being a roaster and selling cherry coffee negatively affects traders’ use of contracts, whereas being vertically integrated has a positive effect on contracting. On the other hand, selling cherry coffee, participating in a competitive environment and having contracts positively influence intermediaries’ performance. Other results show that some individual, family and farm factors, as well as variability of the coffee price at the municipal level favour cooperative affiliation; whereas housing conditions, the proportion of farmers in the municipality and the level of producers selling to intermediaries at the municipal level negatively affect prospects for cooperative membership. We discovered overall positive effects of cooperative participation on household welfare through an increase in the price and total coffee income; results also indicate that households responded to the low coffee price periods with an increase in diversification.

Volgens nieuwe Europese regels voor biologische landbouw en handel moeten inspecties gebaseerd op risicoanalyses de belangrijkste risico’s beperken. Hoe je die risico’s bepaalt is echter niet vastgelegd. Een model van het LEI kan uitkomst bieden.

This report documents the findings of the analysis of the supply chain of organic coffee from Uganda to the Netherlands using a Chain Risk Model (CRM). The CRM considers contamination of organic coffee with chemicals as a threat for the supply chain, and analyses the consequences of contamination in one stage of the supply chain for the subsequent stages. Next to this, CRM also analyses the effectiveness and efficiency of measures to avoid or detect contamination. In a subsequent phase of this research, the CRM can also be used to analyse the consequences of fraud (= mixing of organic coffee and non-organic coffee) and measures to tackle fraud.

This report documents the findings of the analysis of the supply chain of organic coffee from Uganda to the Netherlands using a Chain Risk Model (CRM). The CRM considers contamination of organic coffee with chemicals as a threat for the supply chain, and analyses the consequences of contamination in one stage of the supply chain for the subsequent stages. Next to this, CRM also analyses the effectiveness and efficiency of measures to avoid or detect contamination. In a subsequent phase of this research, the CRM can also be used to analyse the consequences of fraud (= mixing of organic coffee and non-organic coffee) and measures to tackle fraud.

Volgens nieuwe Europese regels voor biologische landbouw en handel moeten inspecties gebaseerd op risicoanalyses de belangrijkste risico’s beperken. Hoe je die risico’s bepaalt is echter niet vastgelegd. Een model van het LEI kan uitkomst bieden.

Cafestol and kahweol are two diterpenes present in unfiltered coffees such as Scandinavian-style boiled coffee, French press coffee and espresso. The health effects of cafestol and kahweol can be positive but also potentially harmful. On the one hand cafestol shows chemo-preventive properties, which might contribute to a reduction of the risk for certain cancers, especially colorectal cancer. On the other hand cafestol is known as the most potent cholesterol-raising compound present in the human diet and also causes a temporally rise in plasma ASAT and ALAT enzymes. This apparently ‘two-faced’ behavior of cafestol was the starting point of this thesis. It was demonstrated that in mice cafestol is extensively metabolized by the liver. Metabolism was found to be associated with Nrf2 activation, causing an induction of biotransformation enzymes and cellular antioxidant defense. This mechanism might explain the proposed anti-carcinogenic effects of cafestol. Furthermore, distribution studies indicated that in mice cafestol accumulates almost exclusively in liver and intestine, and suggested that cafestol undergoes enterohepatic cycling. Further studies showed that cafestol prevents the development of diet-induced obesity, its metabolic complications, and the development of hepatic steatosis in mice. Modulation of the dietary fat content was also used to study the hepatic and intestinal response to cafestol at a transcriptomic level. We showed that dietary fat content is an important determinant of the effects of cafestol. This has been evaluated for several processes already known to be influenced by cafestol, such as bile acid metabolism and Nrf2-mediated biotransformation. Furthermore it was shown that cafestol activated Nrf2-mediated biotransformation both in liver and small intestine. It is concluded that cafestol behaves as a hormetic compound. It elicits a combination of mechanisms which together determine the balance between positive and negative health outcomes. Although for some mechanisms, i.e. the induction of biotransformation enzymes and acute liver toxicity, a connection seems plausible, several questions remain regarding their interrelations. This thesis has generated new mechanistic insights in the multi-faced behavior of cafestol. More studies, including in humans, are needed to study its dose-effect relations and interactions with dietary compounds. For the time being it is advisable to keep cafestol under scrutiny.

In this project, the scope for product specific rules for carbon footprinting of (green) coffee is investigated and a proposal is drafted for further work toward actual definition and implementation of such a standard.

In this project, the scope for product specific rules for carbon footprinting of (green) coffee is investigated and a proposal is drafted for further work toward actual definition and implementation of such a standard.

Cafestol and kahweol are two diterpenes present in unfiltered coffees such as Scandinavian-style boiled coffee, French press coffee and espresso. The health effects of cafestol and kahweol can be positive but also potentially harmful. On the one hand cafestol shows chemo-preventive properties, which might contribute to a reduction of the risk for certain cancers, especially colorectal cancer. On the other hand cafestol is known as the most potent cholesterol-raising compound present in the human diet and also causes a temporally rise in plasma ASAT and ALAT enzymes. This apparently ‘two-faced’ behavior of cafestol was the starting point of this thesis. It was demonstrated that in mice cafestol is extensively metabolized by the liver. Metabolism was found to be associated with Nrf2 activation, causing an induction of biotransformation enzymes and cellular antioxidant defense. This mechanism might explain the proposed anti-carcinogenic effects of cafestol. Furthermore, distribution studies indicated that in mice cafestol accumulates almost exclusively in liver and intestine, and suggested that cafestol undergoes enterohepatic cycling. Further studies showed that cafestol prevents the development of diet-induced obesity, its metabolic complications, and the development of hepatic steatosis in mice. Modulation of the dietary fat content was also used to study the hepatic and intestinal response to cafestol at a transcriptomic level. We showed that dietary fat content is an important determinant of the effects of cafestol. This has been evaluated for several processes already known to be influenced by cafestol, such as bile acid metabolism and Nrf2-mediated biotransformation. Furthermore it was shown that cafestol activated Nrf2-mediated biotransformation both in liver and small intestine. It is concluded that cafestol behaves as a hormetic compound. It elicits a combination of mechanisms which together determine the balance between positive and negative health outcomes. Although for some mechanisms, i.e. the induction of biotransformation enzymes and acute liver toxicity, a connection seems plausible, several questions remain regarding their interrelations. This thesis has generated new mechanistic insights in the multi-faced behavior of cafestol. More studies, including in humans, are needed to study its dose-effect relations and interactions with dietary compounds. For the time being it is advisable to keep cafestol under scrutiny.

Deze studie voor het Vlaamse ministerie van Landbouw en Visserij belicht de economische, sociale en ecologische gevolgen van agrarische handel van België met ontwikkelingslanden. Het onderzoek spitst zich toe op een vijftal producten (banaan, cacao, koffie, soja en thee) en vier ontwikkelingslanden (Brazilië, Costa Rica, Ivoorkust en Tanzania). Het oordeel over de mate van duurzaamheid wordt gebaseerd op de vier landenstudies, uitgevoerd door lokale onderzoekers, waarbij een beperkt aantal indicatoren is meegenomen. Naar voren komt dat met name de twee Latijns Amerikaanse landen negatieve ecologische gevolgen van handel (in soja en banaan) ondervinden, en dat in de Afrikaanse landen de negatieve sociaal-economische aspecten de meeste aandacht vragen. This study for the Flemish Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries sheds light on the economic, social and ecological effects of Belgium's agricultural trade with developing countries. The study focuses on five products (bananas, cocoa, coffee, soya and tea) and four developing countries (Brazil, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire and Tanzania). The assessment of the level of sustainability is based on the four country studies, conducted by local researchers, and taking into account a limited number of indicators. It emerges that the two Latin American countries experience negative ecological effects of trade (in soya and bananas), and that in the African countries the negative social-economic aspects require most attention.

The aim of the work presented in this thesis was the identification of structural and functional properties of coffee brew melanoidins, and their formation mechanisms, that are formed upon roasting of coffee beans.

Deze studie voor het Vlaamse ministerie van Landbouw en Visserij belicht de economische, sociale en ecologische gevolgen van agrarische handel van België met ontwikkelingslanden. Het onderzoek spitst zich toe op een vijftal producten (banaan, cacao, koffie, soja en thee) en vier ontwikkelingslanden (Brazilië, Costa Rica, Ivoorkust en Tanzania). Het oordeel over de mate van duurzaamheid wordt gebaseerd op de vier landenstudies, uitgevoerd door lokale onderzoekers, waarbij een beperkt aantal indicatoren is meegenomen. Naar voren komt dat met name de twee Latijns Amerikaanse landen negatieve ecologische gevolgen van handel (in soja en banaan) ondervinden, en dat in de Afrikaanse landen de negatieve sociaal-economische aspecten de meeste aandacht vragen. This study for the Flemish Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries sheds light on the economic, social and ecological effects of Belgium's agricultural trade with developing countries. The study focuses on five products (bananas, cocoa, coffee, soya and tea) and four developing countries (Brazil, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire and Tanzania). The assessment of the level of sustainability is based on the four country studies, conducted by local researchers, and taking into account a limited number of indicators. It emerges that the two Latin American countries experience negative ecological effects of trade (in soya and bananas), and that in the African countries the negative social-economic aspects require most attention.

The aim of the work presented in this thesis was the identification of structural and functional properties of coffee brew melanoidins, and their formation mechanisms, that are formed upon roasting of coffee beans.

Ethiopian montane rainforests are economically valuable repositories of biodiversity, especially of wild Coffea arabica populations, and they are vanishing at accelerating rates. Our research results confirm theory which explains biodiversity loss by diverging private and social net benefits from land conversion. Poor farmers basically live from hand-to-mouth and manage resources with very short term planning horizons. In such circumstances they cannot afford to carry the cost burden of conservation from which the broader national and global society benefits. Society, on the other hand, highly values the biodiversity of Ethiopia’s montane rainforests, but has not managed to put mechanisms in place which enable to pay for the conservation of these values and conservation policies are in place but are not implemented. While it is economically rational for the farmer to convert forests into agricultural land and thereby improve his income (the financial incentive we refer to here), it is economically irrational for national and global society not to pay for conservation. The core reasons for such divergence is that institutions for conservation and sustainable use are not in place. We identify the most important ones and recommend changes for the Ethiopian case.