A Colombian Coffee Cooperative’s role for Rural Development. A Case Study.

Abstract: This thesis looks at the effects a coffee cooperative in the municipality of Salgar has on its member farmers, and its implication for rural development in the region. Coffee cooperatives have become important strategic institutions within the coffee sector in the country, instigated by the National Coffee Growers Federation. It is the only agricultural sector in the country where farmers can be guaranteed to sell their produce, no matter what. Using Actor-Network Theory, a web of actors connected to the cooperative and farmers are translated to understand their interrelations and purpose, and how they may ultimately affect the coffee growers. Findings suggest the cooperative is an essential institution to maintain the status quo in the region. Should it disappear, it would be detrimental to rural development and cause economic disarray in Salgar. The reason is mainly so because the regional economy is dominated by coffee up to 80%, and without the presence of a regulatory institution which can guarantee price floor (which fluctuates depending on international prices) other buyers would be able to exploit farmers’ prices further. Additionally, while none of the approaches by the cooperative are silver bullets per se to get rid of poverty, nor any one of the particular value-adding processes, nor collaborative projects to increase farmers’ asset bases and productivity levels. But it is a start, a stepping stone upon which farmers will be able to retain a higher share from the value chain than previously through more traditional channels and processes. This study is based on fieldwork carried out in Salgar, in the southwestern region of the department of Antioquia, in Colombia.