Posted by Matt Foerster  |  April 29, 2016

This year, the world will consume more coffee than ever before. And industry projections point to growing demand in the years ahead, especially in emerging markets. Take China, for example. During its annual investor meeting last month, Starbucks highlighted that it’s opening the equivalent of one new store in China every day. The problem, however, is that this rising global demand for coffee cannot be met with a dwindling supply.

Topics: Environment | Livelihoods | Mexico and Central America | News and Announcements | Partnerships | South America |

Posted by Elizabeth Teague  |  March 10, 2016

In December, we published an issue brief focused on the potential of small-and-growing businesses to create shared value for entire supply chains through their agricultural extension services. When delivered effectively, extension services can serve public objectives related to improved farmer livelihoods and environmental conservation, as well as commercial objectives related to procurement and supply chain risk mitigation. In this post, we discuss one example of successful shared value extension from our portfolio. Agriaccess General Manager Tony Poore speaking to one of the Agriaccess farmer groups about an upcoming input delivery

Topics: Advisory Services | Food Security | Partnerships | West Africa |

Posted by Matt Foerster and Lauren Baum  |  October 15, 2015

Kate Danaher of RSF Soical Finance, Les Szabo of Dr. Bronner's, Scott Leonard of Indigenous Designs, Ben Schmerler of Root Capital, and Chris Mann of Guayaki Sustainable Rainforest Products take the stage at SOCAP15 to discuss funding fair trade supply chains. Last week, more than 2,700 impact investors and social entrepreneurs met in San Francisco for the eighth annual SOCAP event. Below, we share a few takeaways and reflections on the state of the impact investing sector and what the keynotes, sessions, and conversations at SOCAP15 revealed about the future of the industry.

Topics: Our Community | Partnerships |

Posted by Willy Foote  |  August 5, 2015

When I envision how to make agriculture work for the world, I think of a system that feeds the global population of nine billion that is expected by 2050 — especially those in cycles of chronic hunger and malnutrition. I think of better farming practices that increase yields and productivity, and that dramatically improve incomes for small-scale producers and the rural poor. I think of an enlightened food industry, as locally based as possible, that creates good jobs across every value chain and protects fragile ecosystems and biodiversity everywhere. And I think of agriculture as a crucial equalizer of opportunity for women and girls, one that provides dignity for the most marginalized populations on earth.   Visiting with coffee farmers on the shores of Lake Kivu in western Rwanda

Topics: Environment | Food Security | News and Announcements | Partnerships |

Posted by Root Capital  |  August 15, 2014

Following the announcement of our Coffee Farmer Resilience Fund in July, many people have asked how the fund differs from our Coffee Farmer Resilience Initiative, launched last November. In short, the Coffee Farmer Resilience Fund is a component of the larger Coffee Farmer Resilience Initiative that channels private-sector funding, matched by the public sector and philanthropic sources, for targeted supply chain investments at the base of the supply chain. The diagram above is designed to illustrate the interplay between the two, and the text below explains the impetus and rationale for each.  

Topics: Mexico and Central America | Partnerships | South America |

Posted by Meg Wilcox  |  December 11, 2013

Charlie Fishbein, owner of Coffee Exchange café in Providence, Rhode Island. Growing rural prosperity for the world’s poorest farmers requires collaboration across entire value chains, from the small businesses who make up our clients, to the traders, brands and retailers who purchase their products, to the consumers who value sustainably-produced goods.  At Root Capital, we don’t often celebrate consumers,…

Topics: Mexico and Central America | Our Community | Partnerships | South America |