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A move beyond sustainability certification: The evolution of the chocolate industry's sustainable sourcing practices

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  • Tannis Thorlakson

Abstract

Companies' sustainable sourcing practices play an increasing role in addressing the social and environmental challenges in agricultural supply chains. Yet the approaches companies take to regulate their supply chains continue to evolve. I use the chocolate industry as a critical case to explore how and why companies have changed their approaches to sustainable cocoa sourcing over the last 20 years. Drawing on an analysis of 205 company documents, 95 newspaper articles and over 50 in‐depth interviews, I trace the evolution of chocolate manufacturers' sustainable sourcing practices from a focus on industry initiatives to a commitment to sustainability certification and now to companies increasingly moving toward own‐supply chain programs. These shifts can in part be explained by the evolving salience of different stakeholder groups over time. This study highlights the dynamic nature of sustainable sourcing practice adoption and suggests companies are building upon previous strategies to incorporate more stakeholder voices over time.

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  • Tannis Thorlakson, 2018. "A move beyond sustainability certification: The evolution of the chocolate industry's sustainable sourcing practices," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(8), pages 1653-1665, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:27:y:2018:i:8:p:1653-1665
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.2230
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    2. Anne Mook & Christine Overdevest, 2021. "What drives market construction for fair trade, organic, and GlobalGAP certification in the global citrus value chain? Evidence at the importer level in the Netherlands and the United States," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(7), pages 2996-3008, November.
    3. Minelle E. Silva & Breno Nunes, 2022. "Institutional logic for sustainable purchasing and supply management: Concepts, illustrations, and implications for business strategy," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(3), pages 1138-1151, March.
    4. Oberlack, Christoph & Blare, Trent & Zambrino, Luca & Bruelisauer, Samuel & Solar, Jimena & Villar, Gesabel & Thomas, Evert & Ramírez, Marleni, 2023. "With and beyond sustainability certification: Exploring inclusive business and solidarity economy strategies in Peru and Switzerland," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    5. Gallemore, Caleb & Jespersen, Kristjan & Olmsted, Paige, 2022. "Harnessing relational values for global value chain sustainability: Reframing the roundtable on sustainable palm oil's offset mechanism to support smallholders," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    6. Xingchen Lv & Weijun Lin & Jun Meng & Linan Mo, 2024. "Spillover Effect of Network Public Opinion on Market Prices of Small-Scale Agricultural Products," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-17, February.
    7. Simon L. Bager & Eric F. Lambin, 2020. "Sustainability strategies by companies in the global coffee sector," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(8), pages 3555-3570, December.
    8. Mei‐Fang Chen, 2020. "The impacts of perceived moral obligation and sustainability self‐identity on sustainability development: A theory of planned behavior purchase intention model of sustainability‐labeled coffee and the," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(6), pages 2404-2417, September.
    9. Carlos F. B. V. Alho & Amanda F. Silva & Chantal M. J. Hendriks & Jetse J. Stoorvogel & Peter J. M. Oosterveer & Eric M. A. Smaling, 2021. "Analysis of banana and cocoa export commodities in food system transformation, with special reference to certification schemes as drivers of change," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 13(6), pages 1555-1575, December.
    10. Francisco Benitez‐Altuna & Valentina C. Materia & Jos Bijman & Daniel Gaitán‐Cremaschi & Jacques Trienekens, 2024. "Farmer–buyer relationships and sustainable agricultural practices in the food supply chain: The case of vegetables in Chile," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(1), pages 3-30, January.
    11. Ranjit Gupta & Cristian Mejia & Shuan Sadreghazi & Yuki Sano & Leticia Sarmento Dos Muchangos & Tomonori Sekiguchi & Hiromi Nakamura & Yuya Kajikawa, 2024. "Traders as ecosystem orchestrators for sustainable foods supply chain transformation," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(5), pages 4024-4038, July.
    12. Matthew Quayson & Chunguang Bai & Joseph Sarkis & Md Altab Hossin, 2024. "Evaluating barriers to blockchain technology for sustainable agricultural supply chain: A fuzzy hierarchical group DEMATEL approach," Operations Management Research, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 728-753, June.
    13. Janina Grabs & Sophia Louise Carodenuto, 2021. "Traders as sustainability governance actors in global food supply chains: A research agenda," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(2), pages 1314-1332, February.
    14. Maile, Felix, 2020. "Cooperation or confrontation? Public and private governance and smallholders' incomes in the cocoa sector in Ghana and in Côte d'Ivoire," ÖFSE-Forum, Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE), volume 74, number 74.
    15. Boysen, Ole & Ferrari, Emanuele & Nechifor, Victor & Tillie, Pascal, 2023. "Earn a living? What the Côte d’Ivoire–Ghana cocoa living income differential might deliver on its promise," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    16. Tennhardt, Lina & Lazzarini, Gianna & Weisshaidinger, Rainer & Schader, Christian, 2022. "Do environmentally-friendly cocoa farms yield social and economic co-benefits?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 197(C).

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