Rebuild Facility case studies

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  • Investing in Deforestation-free Cocoa in Ghana

    Cocoa producers and processors are shifting towards more sustainable approaches and investing in global certification programs. But certifications are not enough – cocoa buyers often struggle to acquire adequate financing, without which they cannot buy certified cocoa and expand sustainability efforts. The Rebuild Facility fills the gap by providing sustainable cocoa companies in Ghana with returnable grants as working capital support, especially when they do not qualify for or cannot afford traditional financing opportunities.

Podcast: How business linkage and financing help coffee farmers to realise certification benefits.

As we transition to a net-zero, nature-positive, socially just economy, our food and agricultural systems have a critical role to play. Sustainable farming systems could reduce emissions, sequester carbon, promote biodiversity in crops and across value-chains, and support livelihoods of millions of farmers and rural communities. Yet today, our food and farming systems are far from this ideal. They contribute 25% of GHGs, drive deforestation and nature degradation. And farmers and rural communities still do not earn livable incomes. A huge transformation is required. And this requires significant investment – in infrastructure, equipment, training and – critically – fair prices for farmers to sustain themselves.

Certification has been presented as a potential solution in this transition. Producers that comply with a set of sustainability standards can secure a certification label – and associated price premium for their produce. However, certification is only beneficial to farmers if coffee buyers have enough capital to purchase certified coffee produced by farmers. With the high cost of accessing finance and the impacts of COVID-19 on the global supply chain, market access players often can only afford a fraction of sustainably produced coffee. Therefore, farmers who invest time and money into securing certification often end up selling their produce without the price premium. 

The Rebuild Facility is a returnable grants facility that attempts to tackle these demand- and supply-issues to help secure farmer livelihoods, protect landscapes and strengthen sustainable coffee and cocoa companies.

In this episode, we speak to Rebuild Facility’s Shasi Wagle and Catherine Ng'ang'a, Head of Sustainability at Coffee Management Services (CMS), a local coffee company in Kenya. CMS received a returnable grant from the Rebuild Facility, which went toward providing income for 6,479 coffee farmers in the Mutira Cooperative and keeping their 1,349 hectares of land under sustainable land management.

Host: Julia Turner. Produced by Nana Agyepong, Julia Turner, and Barnabe Colin.