| dc.description.abstract | Avocados are becoming increasingly popular among consumers. In response to the growing demand, the production of avocado is rapidly expanding. Over one-third of the avocados in the world are cultivated in Mexico, where there are considerable socioeconomic and environmental issues connected to the cultivation of the fruit. Effectively addressing these issues might cause the highly profitable avocado industry to have a positive effect on the socioeconomic development in Mexico. However, there is little research on how this could be achieved. In other sectors, certification standards have shown some promising results in increasing sustainability. While the number of certification standards in the Mexican avocado sector is proliferating, there has been no assessment of how they affect environmental and social outcomes at the farm level. This study sets out to address this research gap by focusing on Rainforest Alliance certification specifically.
This thesis is embedded in wider theoretical debates on certification standards and private governance. Through a theory-based mixed-methods approach in which interviews, a survey, and an extensive literature review were integrated, it was evaluated how adoption and implementation of Rainforest Alliance certification by Mexican avocado producers contributes to more sustainable outcomes at the farm level. The results of this study indicate that the contribution of Rainforest Alliance certification in affecting farm practices related to the sustainability issues differs considerably between producers. Although the Rainforest Alliance-certified producers in this study implement sustainable farm practices, this does not always seem to be the result of Rainforest Alliance certification specifically. Other certification standards also seem to play a role in affecting such farm practices. It was found that most sustainability challenges in the Mexican avocado sector are addressed by the requirements of the Rainforest Alliance certification standard, and therefore seems to have the potential to increase sustainability in the sector. However, adoption of the standard is selective, as only larger, already better-performing producers seem to adopt the standard. To reach its full potential, adoption should be increased by minimising the barriers while enhancing the motivations of producers to adopt certification. It was found that market demand plays a key role in the adoption of certification schemes. Hence, the role buyers and consumers play in impacting production practices should not be underestimated. Moreover, increased partnership between key stakeholders is recommended. | |
