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The economics of quality in the specialty coffee industry: insights from the Cup of Excellence auction programs
Author(s) -
Wilson Adam P.,
Wilson Norbert L.W.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
agricultural economics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.29
H-Index - 82
eISSN - 1574-0862
pISSN - 0169-5150
DOI - 10.1111/agec.12132
Subject(s) - excellence , quality (philosophy) , certification , common value auction , marketing , sustainability , economics , agribusiness , microeconomics , business , industrial organization , management , geography , political science , ecology , agriculture , philosophy , archaeology , epistemology , law , biology
This study estimates price determinants for specialty green coffee auctions using records from the 2004–2010 Cup of Excellence programs hosted by the Alliance for Coffee Excellence. While some literature on coffee has focused on certifications and sustainability labels, the discussion of price determinants has been limited. This article replicates one of the first publications on price determinants and formulates a new model to more accurately describe the market. We include the necessary additional variables and estimate the model using a truncated maximum likelihood estimation technique. While sensory quality has a strong effect on price, the highest premiums stem from obtaining a top rank compared to other coffees from the same country, and North American buyers are more responsive to sensory quality than buyers in Asian and European markets.