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Kennemer Foods International (KFI) Provides a Valuable Safety Net to Cocoa Farmers

KFI joins the Business Call to Action with initiative in Phillipines

Kennemer Foods International (KFI) Provides a Valuable Safety Net to Cocoa Farmers

KFI joins the Business Call to Action with initiative in Phillipines

Published 12-17-14

Submitted by Business Call to Action (BCtA)

Kennemer Foods International, Inc. (KFI), a growing consolidator and supplier of cocoa beans to the international market, has announced its commitment to the Business Call to Action.  The company has created an initiative to integrate 35,000 smallholder famers into their value chain by 2020.

With ideal agronomic and climactic conditions and a large number of smallholder farmers, the Philippines is well positioned to be a stronger producer in the cocoa market.  By utilizing contract-growing and buy-back guarantee agreements with small-holder cacao farmers, KFI is providing training and helping provide effective technology and practices to increase the income of rural farmers.

"KFI’s strategy is an important model designed to empower local farmers to increase their harvests –but more importantly it helps demonstrate the value that technical training can deliver.  By building this more inclusive approach to increase cocoa production, small scale farmers gain purchasing power and are better equipped to deliver and expand their production,” said Suba Sivakumaran, Progamme Manager, Business Call to Action. 

The main focus of KFI is to produce and export high quality fermented cocoa beans.  The company is setting up a more reliable supply of cocoa beans from the Philippines through comprehensive farmer training and knowledge sharing of best practices. Working in partnership with the local government in the region, KFI will set-up 10 Provincial Cacao hubs mostly located in Mindanao.

The company has also pioneered the implementation of the Cocoa Doctor Network in the Philippines. The network is based on the Mars cocoa sector development model designed to support smallholder based production.  Piloted in Indonesia and West Africa and now underway in the Philippines, the program provides specialized cocoa knowledge and technology approaches proven to be high yielding and pest resistant to farmers.

“Kennemer Foods is pleased to showcase the work that we have been doing in the Philippines in an effort to ensure that farmers are integrated into our value chain and support them in their efforts to properly develop, maintain and invest in their farms.," said Simon Bakker, CEO Kennemer Foods International.

It is estimated that by supporting the smallholder cocoa famers in their production efforts, they will increase their incomes by an estimated $3600 per year.  In addition, going forward, the company plans to train and certify 1,300 cocoa doctors in the Philippines by 2020.

For More Information:

BCtA: Karen Newman, karen.newman@undp.org, +1(212)906-5194
Kennemer Foods: Jyska Kuan Ken, jyska.kuanken@kennemerfoods.com, (632) 856 5000 (Local 555)

Business Call to Action is a global initiative that challenges companies to develop inclusive business models that offer the potential for development impact along with commercial success. The initiative is the result of a partnership between the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), UK Department for International Development (DFID), US Agency for International Development (USAID), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Global Compact, and the Clinton Global Initiative to meet the anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals by 2015. Companies report on progress toward commitments on an annual basis. For more information, please visit www.businesscalltoaction.org or join the conversation on Twitter at @BCtAInitiative.

About Kennemer Foods
Kennemer Foods International, Inc. (KFI) is a producer and marketer of food and agricultural products, specializing in the growing, sourcing and trading of high-quality agricultural crops, especially fermented cacao beans.  The company is committed to rural development by promoting market transparency, providing fair value pricing for produce and implementing sustainable farming practices. The company’s program encompasses the complete agricultural value-chain from planting materials, training, agri-technology to market.

Business Call to Action (BCtA) logo

Business Call to Action (BCtA)

Business Call to Action (BCtA)

Business Call to Action is a global joint advocacy platform that works to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by challenging and supporting companies to develop inclusive business models that offer the potential for both commercial success and development impact. It is hosted by the United Nations Development Programme and funded by Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, UK Department for International Development (DFID). To date, 230 companies from around the world have signed on to commit to contribute to the SDGs, from large multinational companies to national and small- and medium-enterprises in 70 countries.

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