Publication

From hidden costs to societal impacts: How can true cost accounting transform value chains? Evidence from a coffee case study

2026

Abstract

Transformations towards more sustainable food systems are needed to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The True Cost Accounting for Food approach can inform transformative actions through a systemic assessment of external environmental, social and health impacts and benefits. This article presents the societal impact of research conducted on the true cost of coffee in Switzerland which led to a change towards more sustainable coffee supply in the EPFL campus, a Swiss University, and beyond. This research contributes to the achievement of all SDGs to varying degrees, but especially SDG 12 & 8: Responsible Consumption and Production, and Decent Work and Economic Growth, respectively.

Official source

https://infoscience.epfl.ch/entities/publication/67632679-616d-4fe9-bf28-13eb03b65b71

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2026

Abstract

Official source

https://infoscience.epfl.ch/entities/publication/67632679-616d-4fe9-bf28-13eb03b65b71

About this result

Related concepts (32)

Food system

The term food system describes the interconnected systems and processes that influence nutrition, food, health, community development, and agriculture. A food system includes all processes and infrastructure involved in feeding a population: growing, harvesting, processing, packaging, transporting, marketing, consumption, distribution, and disposal of food and food-related items. It also includes the inputs needed and outputs generated at each of these steps.

Coffee

Coffee is a beverage prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It has the highest sales in the world market for hot drinks. The seeds of the Coffea plant's fruits are separated to produce unroasted green coffee beans. The beans are roasted and then ground into fine particles that are typically steeped in hot water before being filtered out, producing a cup of coffee.

Sustainable food system

A sustainable food system is a type of food system that provides healthy food to people and creates sustainable environmental, economic, and social systems that surround food. Sustainable food systems start with the development of sustainable agricultural practices, development of more sustainable food distribution systems, creation of sustainable diets, and reduction of food waste throughout the system. Sustainable food systems have been argued to be central to many or all 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

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From hidden costs to societal impacts: How can true cost accounting transform value chains? Evidence from a coffee case study

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