New approaches to govern pineapple supply chains from Costa Rica: Towards more just and sustainable production and trade?

The Costa Rican pineapple sector has been one of the key economic sectors in this biodiversity-rich country and has strongly expanded in the past decades. It is an export-oriented, high-impact sector that has contributed to sustainability problems such as pesticide pollution, labor rights violations, biodiversity loss, and the displacement of local communities from their lands. This article analyzes new and innovative approaches to better govern the supply chain of this agricultural product by focusing on 1) current dynamics in the sustainability certification of pineapples, 2) new human rights and environmental due diligence (HREDD) laws from Europe to hold companies accountable for adverse impacts in their supply chains and 3) innovative approaches of solidaric circular bioeconomy that aim to use the waste from pineapple production and to add value to raw material production in the sites of production. Based on primary data including interviews and field visits in Costa Rica, the analysis highlights the perspectives of different actors involved in this supply chain and the diverse governance instruments. The potential and limitations of these approaches will be discussed, asking who benefits and who is disadvantaged by existing governance arrangements, and showing how governance instruments and the policy mix could be further improved to contribute to a sustainable and just transformation of existing production and trade systems.