Amigabilidade das normas voluntárias sustentáveis: uma análise comparativa entre os setores de soja e café

Abstract

This study investigates how “producer-friendly” Sustainable Voluntary Standards (VSS) are. The research proposes an index to measure the accessibility and support offered by VSS, considering variables such as transparency, participation, costs, financial assistance, and governance. Fifteen VSS for soy and fourteen for coffee were selected and evaluated using data from the Standards Map Database. The results show that while the coffee sector has more homogeneous and producer-friendly standards, the soy sector is characterized by greater heterogeneity and challenges related to transparency and producer inclusion. The study contributes to the debate on sustainability in Brazilian agribusiness and suggests ways to strengthen the inclusion and support of small and medium-sized producers.