Summary
This article evaluated the impact of certified cooperatives on the livelihoods of Ethiopian smallholder coffee farmers. Data were collected in 2009 through surveys with 249 coffee farmers, belonging to three different cooperatives. Findings show that the certification of coffee cooperatives has in total a low impact on small‐scale coffee producers’ livelihoods mainly due to (1) low productivity, (2) insignificant price premium, and (3) poor access to credit and information from the cooperative.