International Coffee Regulation: A Comparison of the International Coffee Organization and the Fair Trade Coffee Regimes

The note examines the challenges in coffee farming due to oversupply and evaluates two regulatory attempts: the International Coffee Organization (ICO) and the Fairtrade Labelling Organization (FLO). While the ICO focuses on sustainability and the FLO on creating demand, both fail to address the root issue of overproduction. The note argues that these efforts are insufficient because they do not reduce supply, suggesting that market correction through producer exit is necessary.