Growing Inequality in the Coffee Global Value Chain: A Complex Network Assessment

Abstract

Following the liberalization of the coffee sector, governance and power balance in the international coffee trade has changed, with associated impacts on livelihoods in producing countries, most of which are middle- and low-income countries. Drawing on trade data for the period 1995–2018, we examine the dynamics and evolution of the international green coffee market to shed light on the re-distribution of value in the coffee supply chain. Data analysis shows that, over the studied period, the green coffee trade has increased considerably while the number of countries with a relevant role in trade has decreased, so that large exporting countries cover a higher share of trade, to the detriment of small exporting countries. We analyzed various properties of the global coffee trade network to provide insight on the relative contribution of countries not only in terms of their export value but also in terms of other selected features. The green coffee trade has gone from being distributed in many traditionally coffee-producing countries to concentrating mainly on the major coffee producers, as well as in some non-producing countries. These changes in the structure of the international green coffee market have led to greater inequality between producing and importing countries.