Banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO: GABRIELA SCHNEIDER

Uma banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : GABRIELA SCHNEIDER
DATE: 07/06/2024
TIME: 14:00
LOCAL: Sala virtual: https://meet.google.com/zkq-cryx-eyu
TITLE:

Building taste and value: coffees from the south of Minas Gerais in the context of the quality turn

KEY WORDS:

Agri-food markets; Specialty coffees; Construction of quality; Construction of taste 

PAGES: 110
BIG AREA: Ciências Humanas
AREA: Sociologia
SUBÁREA: Sociologia Rural
SUMMARY:

The research proposed here aims to explore the market for differentiated coffees produced in the south of Minas Gerais, especially specialty coffees, in a context of globalization and neoliberalization of food systems and the coffee sector. Specialty coffees have a specific socio-technical network, where conceptions of quality are constructed and negotiated. Despite the importance of coffee production and consumption in our country, most of the income generated in the coffee sector doesn't stay in Brazil, or even in the production sector, despite the efforts of Brazilian producers. The final product incorporates values when it arrives in the countries of the Global North, where the bean is re-processed and industrialized, making it overvalued. This process has been called the "Coffee Paradox", in which actors from the Global North capture most of the income generated in the sector and superimpose their values. Much has been discussed about the structural conditions that make the coffee value chain unequal for producers in the Global South. Most of this research, however, does not analyze the particularities and local roots of such power asymmetries and tends to suggest a homogeneity throughout the Global South. Thus, although coffee is extremely important in Brazil's historical and current configuration, little is known about the disputes, narratives and contradictions of the specialty coffees produced in Brazil, specifically in the southern region of Minas Gerais. This universe will be analyzed in order to answer the following question: how has the coffee quality market incorporated ethical and aesthetic criticism? As a hypothesis, we believe that the aesthetic debate is taking second place to ethical aspects in the specialty coffee sector. To answer this question, we propose adopting the theoretical-methodological framework of Pragmatic Sociology, also using the New Economic Sociology and the Actor-Network Theory. The plan is to use participant observation, documentary analysis and interviews to describe how value creation processes work in Brazil, comparing them with existing literature. The data collection method therefore focuses on three groups of actors: producers, consumers and distribution networks. By analyzing the production, marketing and consumption practices of specialty coffees, the research proposed here aims to contribute to understanding the processes of taste construction, value creation and access to markets.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - 1550345 - MARIA DE FATIMA FERREIRA PORTILHO
Externo à Instituição - ABEL PERINAZZO CASSOL - UFMA
Externo à Instituição - FELIPE DA LUZ COLOMÉ
Externa à Instituição - LUIZA BORGES DULCI