Coordinating B2B cross‐border supply chains: the case of the organic coffee industry

The recent interest in and increasing demand for healthy, social and environmentally sustainable products, particularly in developed countries, have fostered the presence of organic coffee supermarket shelves of such countries. Proposes two models of B2B relationships for the Brazilian supply of organic coffee to international markets, more specifically, The Netherlands. For this proposition, compares two possible organizations of the supply chain wherein B2B relationships are based not only on contracts but more importantly on the informal safeguards of mutual trust, long‐term orientation and joint actions. For the two proposed chains, a cross‐border integrator is included to support the coordination of the business relationship. Emphasis is placed on coordination to increase overall efficiency of the supply chain through reduction of internal and transaction costs.