COFFEE PULPING TECHNOLOGY IMPACT OVER ECONOMIC DIMENSION

Abstract

This study is on economic impact assessment of coffee pulper technology in the São Paulo State, Brazil, from the 1990s to 2006. This innovation is an alternative procedure for postharvest preparation of no-washed Brazilian coffees, with relevant advantages on product quality to the point of substituting the Colombian and Central American washed coffees in the blends of largest global roasters. We used indicators on transaction cost, productivity and risk, and structural changes, disposed in a relevance tree of indicators, employing IMPACTOS software developed by Elabora at the Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Surveys ware applied in loco, also with deep interviews for complementary information. We used a Lieckert scale, witch was converted in a reticulate ranging from -1 to 1. It allowed aggregating values from the bottom to the top of the impact hierarchy structure. Values were weighted and pondered according to impact component weight given and answers cohesion. The sample was regionally stratified. The economic impacts of the technology were positive, whit satisfactory data consistence. Transaction costs were lowered, investments were fostered and risks diminished.