IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/fpr/esspwp/72.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Can agricultural traders be trusted? Evidence from urban coffee markets in Ethiopia:

Author

Listed:
  • Assefa, Thomas Woldu
  • Minten, Bart

Abstract

Traditional food marketing systems in developing countries are often not trusted. In consequence, policy makers frequently try to regulate them and modern market arrangements increasingly are emerging to address some of their presumed deficiencies. However, it is unclear how trustworthy these markets actually are and if and to what extent regulation and modernization affects market governance. In this paper we look at the case of coffee in urban settings in Ethiopia to test trustworthiness along three dimensions of trade transactions - weights, quality, and the presence of illegal trade. We find that traders are relatively trustworthy on observable quality characteristics and weights.

Suggested Citation

  • Assefa, Thomas Woldu & Minten, Bart, 2015. "Can agricultural traders be trusted? Evidence from urban coffee markets in Ethiopia:," ESSP working papers 72, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    • Handle: RePEc:fpr:esspwp:72
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://cdm15738.contentdm.oclc.org/utils/getfile/collection/p15738coll2/id/128956/filename/129167.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Marcel Fafchamps & Ruth Vargas Hill & Bart Minten, 2008. "Quality control in nonstaple food markets: evidence from India," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 38(3), pages 251-266, May.
    2. Bart Minten & Thomas Reardon, 2008. "Food Prices, Quality, and Quality's Pricing in Supermarkets versus Traditional Markets in Developing Countries ," Review of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 30(3), pages 480-490.
    3. Rashid, Shahidur & Minot, Nicholas, 2010. "Are Staple Food Markets in Africa Efficient? Spatial Price Analyses and Beyond," Food Security Collaborative Working Papers 58562, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    4. Minten, Bart & Tamru, Seneshaw & Kuma, Tadesse & Nyarko, Yaw, 2014. "Structure and Performance of Ethiopia’s Coffee Export Sector," 2014: Food, Resources and Conflict, December 7-9, 2014. San Diego, California 197157, International Agricultural Trade Research Consortium.
    5. repec:bla:devpol:v:21:y:2003:i:5-6:p:531-553 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. Jayne, T.S. & Zulu, Ballard & Nijhoff, J.J., 2006. "Stabilizing food markets in eastern and southern Africa," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 328-341, August.
    7. Minten, Bart & Reardon, Thomas & Sutradhar, Rajib, 2010. "Food Prices and Modern Retail: The Case of Delhi," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(12), pages 1775-1787, December.
    8. Minten, Bart & Singh, K.M. & Sutradhar, Rajib, 2013. "Branding and agricultural value chains in developing countries: Insights from Bihar (India)," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 23-34.
    9. Unnevehr, Laurian J., 2000. "Food safety issues and fresh food product exports from LDCs," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 23(3), pages 231-240, September.
    10. Thomas Reardon & C. Peter Timmer & Christopher B. Barrett & Julio Berdegué, 2003. "The Rise of Supermarkets in Africa, Asia, and Latin America," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 85(5), pages 1140-1146.
    11. Osborne, Theresa, 2005. "Imperfect competition in agricultural markets: evidence from Ethiopia," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(2), pages 405-428, April.
    12. repec:bla:devpol:v:24:y:2006:i:2:p:163-174 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Douglas Gollin & Richard Rogerson, 2014. "Agriculture, Roads, and Economic Development in Uganda," NBER Chapters, in: African Successes, Volume IV: Sustainable Growth, pages 69-110, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Otsuki, Tsunehiro & Wilson, John S. & Sewadeh, Mirvat, 2001. "Saving two in a billion: : quantifying the trade effect of European food safety standards on African exports," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 26(5), pages 495-514, October.
    15. Xiu, Changbai & Klein, K.K., 2010. "Melamine in milk products in China: Examining the factors that led to deliberate use of the contaminant," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(5), pages 463-470, October.
    16. Pingali, Prabhu, 2007. "Westernization of Asian diets and the transformation of food systems: Implications for research and policy," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 281-298, June.
    17. Kherallah, Mylène & Delgado, Christopher L. & Gabre-Madhin, Eleni Z. & Minot, Nicholas. & Johnson, Michael., 2000. "The road half traveled," Food policy reports 10, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
      • Kherallah, Mylène & Delgado, Christopher L. & Gabre-Madhin, Eleni Z. & Minot, Nicholas & Johnson, Michael, 2000. "The road half traveled," Issue briefs 2, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    18. Dina Umali‐Deininger & Mona Sur, 2007. "Food safety in a globalizing world: opportunities and challenges for India," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 37(s1), pages 135-147, December.
    19. Masters, Adrian, 2008. "Unpleasant middlemen," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 68(1), pages 73-86, October.
    20. Tschirley, David L. & Jayne, T.S., 2010. "Exploring the Logic Behind Southern Africa's Food Crises," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(1), pages 76-87, January.
    21. Ramaswami Bharat & Murugkar Milind & Shelar Mahesh, 2009. "Product Proliferation in India's Cotton Seed Market: Are There Too Many Varieties?," Journal of Agricultural & Food Industrial Organization, De Gruyter, vol. 7(1), pages 1-17, March.
    22. Jia, Xiangping & Huang, Jikun & Luan, Hao & Rozelle, Scott & Swinnen, Johan, 2012. "China’s Milk Scandal, government policy and production decisions of dairy farmers: The case of Greater Beijing," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 390-400.
    23. Minten, Bart & Tamru, Seneshaw & Kuma, Tadesse & Nyarko,Yaw, 2014. "Summary of Structure and performance of Ethiopia’s coffee export sector," ESSP research notes 29, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    24. Rashid, Shahidur & Cummings Jr., Ralph & Gulati, Ashok, 2007. "Grain Marketing Parastatals in Asia: Results from Six Case Studies," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 35(11), pages 1872-1888, November.
    25. Sitko, Nicholas J. & Jayne, T.S., 2014. "Exploitative Briefcase Businessmen, Parasites, and Other Myths and Legends: Assembly Traders and the Performance of Maize Markets in Eastern and Southern Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 56-67.
    26. Sahn,David E. & Dorosh,Paul A. & Younger,Stephen D., 1999. "Structural Adjustment Reconsidered," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521665131, January.
    27. Reardon, Thomas & Timmer, C. Peter, 2007. "Transformation of Markets for Agricultural Output in Developing Countries Since 1950: How Has Thinking Changed?," Handbook of Agricultural Economics, in: Robert Evenson & Prabhu Pingali (ed.), Handbook of Agricultural Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 55, pages 2807-2855, Elsevier.
    28. Fafchamps, Marcel & Minten, Bart, 2001. "Property Rights in a Flea Market Economy," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 49(2), pages 229-267, January.
    29. Woldu, Thomas & Abebe, Girum & Lamoot, Indra & Minten, Bart, 2013. "Urban food retail in Africa: The case of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia," ESSP working papers 50, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    30. Timmer, C. Peter, 1989. "Food price policy : The rationale for government intervention," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 14(1), pages 17-27, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ebata, Ayako & Huttel, Silke, 2015. "Do development projects link smallholdrs to markets?," 2015 Conference, August 9-14, 2015, Milan, Italy 211583, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    2. Minten, Bart & Dereje, Mekdim & Engeda, Ermias & Kuma, Tadesse, 2015. "Coffee value chains on the move: Evidence from smallholder coffee farmers in Ethiopia:," ESSP working papers 76, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    3. Ebata, Ayako & Hüttel, Silke, 2015. "Do development projects link smallholders to markets?," GlobalFood Discussion Papers 204326, Georg-August-Universitaet Goettingen, GlobalFood, Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development.
    4. Gelaw, F., 2018. "Impacts of Trademarking on Export and Producer Prices in Ethiopian Coffee," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 277290, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    5. Tröster, Bernhard, 2015. "Global commodity chains, financial markets, and local market structures: Price risks in the coffee sector in Ethiopia," Working Papers 56, Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Minten, Bart & Assefa, Thomas & Hirvonen, Kalle, 2017. "Can Agricultural Traders be Trusted? Evidence from Coffee in Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 77-88.
    2. Minten, Bart & Reardon, Thomas & Vandeplas, Anneleen, 2009. "Linking urban consumers and rural farmers in India: A comparison of traditional and modern food supply chains," IFPRI discussion papers 883, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    3. Minten, Bart & Singh, K.M. & Sutradhar, Rajib, 2011. "Branding in food retail of high value crops in Asia: Case of Makhana from Bihar (India)," MPRA Paper 54334, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 31 Jan 2011.
    4. Thomas Reardon & David Zilberman, 2022. "Symbiotic, Resilient, and Rapidly Transforming Food Supply Chains in LMICs: Supermarket and E-commerce Revolutions Helped by Wholesale and Logistics Co-pivoting," NBER Chapters, in: Risks in Agricultural Supply Chains, pages 13-28, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Minten, Bart & Singh, K.M. & Sutradhar, Rajib, 2013. "Branding and agricultural value chains in developing countries: Insights from Bihar (India)," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 23-34.
    6. Minten, Bart & Singh, K.M. & Sutradhar, Rajib, 2010. "The makhana value chain and the fast emergence of branding in food retail: Evidence from Bihar (India)," MPRA Paper 54344, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 14 Jan 2010.
    7. Minten, Bart & Singh, K.M. & Sutradhar, Rajib, 2011. "The rapid emergence of branding in food retail in Asia: Insights from Bihar (India)," MPRA Paper 54337, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 14 Jan 2011.
    8. Bart Minten & Yetimwork Habte & Kaleab Baye & Seneshaw Tamru, 2023. "Food Safety and Incipient Modern Value Chains: Evidence from Milk in Ethiopia," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 35(5), pages 1197-1223, October.
    9. Minten, Bart & Tamru, Seneshaw & Engida, Ermias & Kuma, Tadesse, 2013. "Ethiopia’s value chains on the move: The case of teff:," ESSP working papers 52, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    10. Minten, Bart & Murshid, K.A.S. & Reardon, Thomas, 2013. "Food Quality Changes and Implications: Evidence from the Rice Value Chain of Bangladesh," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 100-113.
    11. Gómez, Miguel I. & Ricketts, Katie D., 2013. "Food value chain transformations in developing countries: Selected hypotheses on nutritional implications," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 139-150.
    12. David Tschirley & Thomas Reardon & Michael Dolislager & Jason Snyder, 2015. "The Rise of a Middle Class in East and Southern Africa: Implications for Food System Transformation," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(5), pages 628-646, July.
    13. repec:lic:licosd:28811 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. David Tschirley & Thomas Reardon & Michael Dolislager & Jason Snyder, 2015. "The Rise of a Middle Class in East and Southern Africa: Implications for Food System Transformation," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(5), pages 628-646, July.
    15. Minten, Bart & Reardon, Thomas & Sutradhar, Rajib, 2010. "Food Prices and Modern Retail: The Case of Delhi," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(12), pages 1775-1787, December.
    16. Theriault, Veronique & Assima, Amidou & Vroegindewey, Ryan & Tschirley, David & Keita, Naman, 2017. "A City-Retail Outlet Inventory Of Processed Dairy And Grain Foods: Evidence From Mali," Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy Research Papers 261675, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics, Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security (FSP).
    17. Reardon, Thomas & Liverpool-Tasie, Saweda & Minten, Bart, 2022. "IFAD Research Series 78: The Small and Medium Enterprises’ quiet revolution in the hidden middle of food systems in developing regions," IFAD Research Series 321998, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
    18. Assefa, Thomas & Minten, Bart J., 2015. "Can agricultural traders be trusted? Evidence from Ethiopia," 2015 Conference, August 9-14, 2015, Milan, Italy 210964, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    19. Minten, Bart & Murshid, K.A.S. & Reardon, Thomas, 2011. "The quiet revolution in agrifood value chains in Asia: The case of increasing quality in rice markets in Bangladesh," IFPRI discussion papers 1141, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    20. Minten, Bart & Assefa, Thomas Woldu & Abebe, Girum & Engida, Ermias & Tamru, Seneshaw, 2016. "Food processing, transformation, and job creation: The case of Ethiopia’s enjera markets," ESSP working papers 96, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    21. Sitko, Nicholas J. & Jayne, T.S., 2014. "Exploitative Briefcase Businessmen, Parasites, and Other Myths and Legends: Assembly Traders and the Performance of Maize Markets in Eastern and Southern Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 56-67.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Sustainability; coffee; exports; Commodities; Quality; urban areas; trade; Retail marketing; value chains; high value agricultural products;
    All these keywords.

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:fpr:esspwp:72. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: the person in charge (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/ifprius.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.