Power, place and profit: the Kona coffee geographic indication

Abstract

Geographical indications (GIs)—product labels linked to geographic origin—may benefit local farmers and preserve place-based value. However, a growing body of scholarship reveals that powerful value chain actors frequently co-opt GI governance, capturing the majority of economic benefits, decreasing product quality, and marginalizing farmers. We examine the Kona coffee GI as a unique case in which smallholder farmers increased their influence over their GI governance system, redefining the GI through the 2024 passage of House Bill 2298. This bill mandates that coffee labeled as “Kona” must contain at least 51% Kona coffee, a significant increase from the 10% minimum previously required for the last three decades. We draw on 40 interviews and event ethnography at two major coffee industry conferences to trace the long power struggle over the Kona coffee GI. We find that farmers achieved this unprecedented legislative change through a confluence of factors: 1) gaining political influence through organizing, alliances, and legal victories, 2) capitalizing on consumer shifts in the growing specialty coffee market, and 3) leveraging technological advancements to decrease dependence on intermediaries. The Kona coffee case provides a compelling example of farmer-led GI reform. However, the aftermath of HB2298’s passage also reveals limits to farmer leverage, as possible market retaliation and deeply embedded supply chain inequities continue to threaten the legislation’s long-term gains. Our findings highlight the complex and contingent nature of farmer empowerment in GI systems and underscore the need for deep attention to the power dynamics that govern alternative food labeling schemes.