Assessing Smallholder Coffee Supply Chains in Colombia's Cooperativa Orgánica de Antioquia

Thesis Abstract

Smallholder coffee farmers in Antioquia, Colombia, face persistent barriers to integrated value chain participation, including access to finance, quality improvements, and market information, which constrain productivity, price realization, and resilience to shocks. This study addresses the problem by examining the performance of the Cooperativa Orgánica de Antioquia (COA) as a platform for linking smallholders to premium markets, assessing how governance, traceability, and technical intervention influence farm incomes, productivity, and sustainability outcomes. The aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of COA in improving smallholder welfare through enhanced supply chain coordination, quality differentiation, and access to risk-sharing mechanisms. The specific objectives are to (1) map supply chain structures and governance arrangements within COA, (2) quantify impacts of COA participation on household income, yield, and input use, (3) analyze quality upgrading processes, certification status, and premium capture, (4) identify barriers to scalability and risk management, and (5) provide evidence-based recommendations for policy and managerial improvements. The study adopts a mixed-methods approach anchored in a comparative case framework. A cross-sectional survey will be conducted with 420 smallholder households affiliated with COA and 120 non-affiliated farmers in neighboring cooperatives to enable counterfactual analysis. Quantitative data will be collected through structured questionnaires capturing demographics, production practices, input costs, yields, prices, and household welfare indicators, supplemented by farm-level measurements and COA transaction records. Qualitative data will be gathered via semi-structured interviews with COA management, quality control staff, and selected exporters, as well as focus group discussions with farmer groups to explore governance, trust, and information flows. The study will apply propensity score matching to estimate the causal impact of COA participation on income and productivity, multiple regression analysis to assess determinants of yield and certification status, and a difference-in-differences approach where time-series data permit. For quality differentiation and value capture, hedonic pricing models will be used to examine premiums associated with COA-certified coffee, while a thematic analysis will interpret interview and focus group data to elucidate mechanisms of supply chain coordination, risk sharing, and farmer empowerment. The theoretical framework integrates the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework to unpack governance interactions within the COA, and the Resource-Based View (RBV) to interpret capability development and competitive differentiation through traceability and organic certification. Expected findings include (i) evidence that COA participation is associated with significantly higher net household incomes and more stable cash flows due to structured price ladders and access to pre-harvest finance; (ii) improved agronomic practices and input use efficiency linked to COA extension services and farmer field schools, resulting in yield gains of 8–15% in participating households; (iii) successful attainment of organic and fair-trade certifications that command premium prices, with hedonic analysis indicating premium ranges of 6–12% over non-certified coffee, contingent on traceability and quality attributes; (iv) identification of bottlenecks such as financing constraints for input procurement, gaps in premium sharing with farmers, and information asymmetries in contract enforcement. The study will contribute to knowledge by combining supply chain governance theory with empirical, context-specific assessment of Afro-Latin American smallholder coffee networks, offering a transferable framework for evaluating similar producer organizations in other coffee-growing regions. Conclusions are expected to reveal that COA enhances smallholders’ market access, quality upgrading, and resilience when governance structures align incentives with farmer outcomes and when transparent premium distribution and risk-sharing mechanisms are embedded. Policy recommendations include strengthening on-farm accreditation and credit access, expanding capacity-building programs aligned with certification requirements, and implementing transparent, performance-based premium sharing. Managerial implications emphasize scalable governance designs, enhanced information systems, and investment in traceability infrastructure to sustain value capture and inclusivity across the coffee supply chain.