Nestlé signs MoU with IDH Sustainable Trade Initiative

Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate Nestlé has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the IDH Sustainable Trade Initiative under its Grown Sustainably in Africa (GSA) programme.

Under this new initiative, Nestlé intends to support 25,000 farmers and 50 small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

The company is also planning to open new markets for farmers in Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria, thereby increasing employment opportunities and food security in the region.

Nestlé Central and West Africa CEO Rémy Ejel said: “In line with Nestlé’s Creating Shared Value approach, our new partnership with IDH will increase the capacity of farmers to produce high-quality crops that will enhance the local supply and help develop local economies – this is all part of our commitment to improving 30 million livelihoods in communities directly connected to our business activities.”

Through this new partnership, Nestle intends to develop and empower farmers to support its objective of increasing production of regionally-produced raw materials used in the production of Maggi, Milo and Cerelac from 60% to more than 70% by 2022.

It also anticipates that imported food crops for local markets could be reduced by improving regional agricultural produce.

The GSA programme will also enable the company to address issues such as finance, technical and management capabilities faced by farmers and SMEs.

The IDH-Nestlé partnership will be delivered in three stages. In the first stage, a project structure will be defined before analysis is carried out to assess and identify farmers and SMEs, in line with Nestlé’s business model.

During the second stage, a technical team will be involved and will hold regular meetings with each farmer and SMEs to offer them long-term support to build on their local sourcing capacities.

In the third phase, IDH’s Farmfit Fund will provide SMEs with affordable working capital to scale-up their businesses after they begin providing reliable quality supply.

IDH Sustainable Trade Initiative executive director Joost Oorthuizen said: “This partnership pairs IDH’s technical expertise in agriculture value chain development and innovative financing through the €500m IDH Farmfit Fund, with commitments from Nestlé’s supply chain.

“It will help to transform farmers and SMEs into long-term, sustainable operators and have a massive impact on building up the African economy, creating jobs and increasing food security.”