Sweet like chocolate?: making the coffee and cocoa trade work for biodiversity and livelihoods
2003
K. Gooding
This paper studies the cases of cocoa and coffee to assess whether their systems of production and trade meet the needs and aspirations of poor rural populations in the developing world, and minimize environmental damage.Findings include: the collapse in commodity prices over the last few decades threatens farmer livelihoods and development prospects this collapse in prices also has a significant impact on the environment the biodiversity effects of changing prices are highly site-specific, but it is clear that the market is not delivering environmentally or socially sound outcomesRecommendations to enhance the social and environmental sustainability of the coffee and cocoa trade include: policy action at an international level a global fund to support more sustainable coffee and cocoa production: the fund would support sustainable coffee and cocoa production in developing countries on a project basis, which could include: maintaining existing shade production and converting from sun to shade production encouraging multiple cropping within shade systems minimising external input use (e.g. through integrated pest management) setting aside conservation zones in the most ecologically important areas replanting existing farms rather than clearing new areas of forest elimination of tariff escalation and trade distorting domestic subsidies multilateral action on competition policy debt cancellation consumer education and eco-labelling co-operative action by companies to conserve the environment and improve livelihoods[adapted from author]
Show more [+] Less [-]AGROVOC Keywords
Bibliographic information
This bibliographic record has been provided by Institute of Development Studies