Pre-investment Technical Assistance by LDN TAF
Country:
Mexico
Sector:
Citrus, Agroforestry
Business model
Arpen envisions the future of its business in sourcing from smallholders applying citrus-based agroforestry practices on potentially up to 16.000 ha. The business case for Arpen is increased stability of supply from a more resilient agronomical system and greater loyalty from the farmers, more diversified export potential, and higher yields. Arpen also sees client demand going beyond organic and sourcing from a polycultural production system. The business case for the farmer is greater revenue diversification and improved resilience to climate change and fluctuations in input and offtake markets.
Investment need
The investment need will be discovered during the feasibility design phase for agroforestry and can focus on financing Arpen and/or smallholders in their transition to agroforestry (e.g. through a loan scheme for on-lending microfinance and/or up-front input provision) and expand/diversify their processing capacity.
Technical assistance
The TA support enables the development of fit-for-purpose citrus-based agroforestry systems for the Yucatan peninsula. It will build the foundation for a transition to agroforestry for the ~4,000 smallholders supplying Arpen, increasing their economic resilience through the following objectives:
- Design and implement a regenerative agroforestry system for Arpen, a leading commercial citrus exporter in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and its supplier, the Union of smallholders, with the aim of enhancing climate resilience of monoculture citrus plantations and improving farmer livelihoods.
- Realize a) several Model Farm designs of regenerative citrus agroforestry based on local needs, practices and market opportunities, and b) an educational Agroforestry Center, serving as the hub of citrus-based agroforestry knowledge, awareness and capacity-building for farmers and (student) agronomists, and provision of agroforestry input materials.
- Test a regenerative agroforestry business model for a commercial citrus plantation and determine investment needs for Arpen.
The implementation of this TA is supported by reNature as a project partner.
Technical assistance support from the LDN TAF does not constitute a commitment from the LDN Fund, or Mirova, to finance directly or indirectly the project described above. Any such commitment shall be subject to inter alia, a detailed technical, financial and legal due diligence of the company and the project, as well as all required LDN Fund investment committee approvals and satisfactory documentation.
