مدیریت زنجیره تامین پایدار قهوه: یک مطالعه در شهر بون ما توت،داک لاک و ویتنام Sustainable coffee supply chain management: a case study in Buon Me Thuot City, Daklak, Vietnam

Introduction Coffee is a major agricultural export commodity of Vietnam with the export value accounts for 3% of national GDP in 2014 and provides a livelihood for approximately 2.6 million people (Vietnam Customs 2015). Following Brazil, since 2000 Vietnam has continuously been the world’s second-largest exporter of coffee, typically to EU and US markets, which shows a positive outlook for the future of this sector (Marsh 2007). However, numerous challenges need to be overcome in order to make it happen. Currently, less than 10% of Vietnamese coffee is grown sustainably, compared with 75% in Latin America (Mistiaen 2012). With the increase in global market requirements, the competitiveness of Vietnamese coffee is being threatened. For example, people still use many unsustainable farming methods such as monocultures, burning of crop residue, poor fertility management, tillage, etc. which results in many catastrophic impacts on the environment – such as deforestation and soil degradation – have the potential to lead to a decrease in yields, increase in insect pests and diseases on crops (Schmitter et al. 2010). Many researches confirms that the rural poor dwellers are one of the most vulnerable residential group to environmental deterioration as their livelihoods mainly depend on natural resources (Dasgupta et al. 2003). A meta-analysis of (Rahmann 2011; Bennett and Franzel 2013) states that the level of biodiversity in sustainable farms (such as organic farms, fair-trade farms) is higher than conventional farms. Sustainable farming is cost-effective system that have significant impacts on poverty alleviation, sustainable development in under-developed nations around the world (Kilcher 2007). According to (Crowdera and Reganold 2015; Nemes 2009; Ramesh et al. 2010), sustainable farms provide farmers with higher economic profitability by 22 to 35% compare to others thanks to higher yields and price premiums of sustainable products. Therefore, sustainability will need to be comprehensively addressed in coffee production to improve the uses of natural resources for human needs without damaging the environment (Nguyen and Yapwattanaphuna 2015). Also, sustainable approach enables farmers to use their knowledge and skills more effectively. However, the factors impact on farmers’ adoption to a new sustainable agricultural practice vary widely from farmers’ perception, the characteristics of the new practice to resource endowments, socio-economic status, demographic characteristics, and access to institutional services (Negatu and Parikh 1999). The government is aiming to reach 65% of sustainable coffee production by 2018, which will help to preserve the environment, improve the living standards of the farmers and ensure a steady coffee supply for food processors (Mistiaen 2012). Hence, the purpose of this paper is to study the current situation of the supply chain of Vietnamese coffee in Buon Ma Thuot City, Dak Lak Province, Vietnam, to examine the issues related to the development of sustainable coffee and to build up a logistic model that will explain the correlation between those factors and the decision to join the sustainable coffee program. This study also propose some suggestions to increase the competitive advantages of the commodity, as well as to help coffee farmers to be more flexible in a constantly changing market.