Stakeholders’ perceptions on sustainability transition pathways of the cocoa value chain towards improved livelihood of small-scale farming households in Cameroon

Abstract

Given the persistent poor livelihood of cocoa-farming households, future climate predictions and the worldwide demand pressure for higher cocoa quality and productivity, there is still a strong need to find new approaches that guarantee a sustainable cocoa future in cocoa-producing countries amongst which Cameroon is one of them. This exploratory research investigates potential future pathways for the cocoa sector in Cameroon by mapping the perceptions of actors involved in the socio-technical regime. Qualitative expert interviews, structured questionnaires and field observation, as well as a focus group discussion have been applied to understand how a sustainability transition can be triggered. The study shows that actors envisage a sustainability change which determines their actions; however, their perceptions towards future transitions are not actively coordinated. Actors are not finding a way of adopting new organizational structures and letting a transition occur effectively, like in the case of certification standards. An alignment of perceptions and activities, and a stronger cooperation between the private and public are strongly recommended. The study encourages to consider a coordination of actors' perceptions towards future scenarios as a starting point to study sustainability transitions.

Quality differentiation of cocoa beans: implications for geographical indications

“…As agricultural and postharvest variables have been a matter of research regarding the effects on cocoa and chocolate quality, 16 farming systems around the tropics experience an increased demand for higher quality and productivity, together with an essential need to implement governance structures for guaranteeing sustainability 17 . In this context, GI strategies might represent an effective response to such complex challenges; however, efforts on their development require the understanding of research advances that may offer opportunities towards the determination of essential and relevant attributes bound to geographical origin.…”

Traceability, authenticity and sustainability of cocoa and chocolate products: a challenge for the chocolate industry

“…Sustainable cocoa implies the production of high quality cocoa beans in terms of nutritional composition, flavor volatiles, polyphenolic content and fermentative quality (Kongor et al 2016). However, current cocoa farming practices are causing extensive deforestation, with consequent loss of biodiversity (Wessel and Foluke Quist-Wessel 2015), and greenhouse emissions from transportation also have negative effects on the environment (Saltini, Akkerman, and Frosch 2013;Vogel et al 2020). The economic vulnerability of cocoa-farming households (Vogel et al 2020) also undermines efforts toward achieving sustainable cocoa production, and poor governance in most of the cocoa-producing regions complicates the guarantee of traceability (Saltini, Akkerman, and Frosch 2013).…”

“…However, current cocoa farming practices are causing extensive deforestation, with consequent loss of biodiversity (Wessel and Foluke Quist-Wessel 2015), and greenhouse emissions from transportation also have negative effects on the environment (Saltini, Akkerman, and Frosch 2013;Vogel et al 2020). The economic vulnerability of cocoa-farming households (Vogel et al 2020) also undermines efforts toward achieving sustainable cocoa production, and poor governance in most of the cocoa-producing regions complicates the guarantee of traceability (Saltini, Akkerman, and Frosch 2013). There is therefore a strong need to find new approaches that can ensure a viable future for cocoa-producing countries (Vogel et al 2020).…”

“…The economic vulnerability of cocoa-farming households (Vogel et al 2020) also undermines efforts toward achieving sustainable cocoa production, and poor governance in most of the cocoa-producing regions complicates the guarantee of traceability (Saltini, Akkerman, and Frosch 2013). There is therefore a strong need to find new approaches that can ensure a viable future for cocoa-producing countries (Vogel et al 2020). The importance of quality control, and assessment of authenticity and traceability has resulted in the development of promising analytical tools, which will be described in depth in this review.…”

Transhumant pastoralism in a changing world : Challenges and opportunities to sustainable yak farming in Bhutan

“…In parallel, the diverging views on problems and solutions among stakeholder groups will also open a 'window of opportunity' for niche innovations through multi-stakeholder dialogue. This, however, can only work when there is an appropriate platform for deliberation and collective acknowledgment and definition of problems whereby stakeholder groups work together to find ways to generate solutions for the problems (Loorbach, 2010, Wanzenböck et al, 2019, Vogel et al, 2020.…”