The Inclusive Market Alliance for Rural Entrepreneurs: Mercy Corps, Wal-Mart and USAIDFrom Small Farm to Small Business: New Directions for Sustainable Food Security IFADC, Kansas City, June 2011

IMARE LaunchedIn October 2007, Mercy Corps, Wal-Mart, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Guatemalan nonprofit Fundacin GIL (Fundacin Apoyo a la Generacin de Ingresos Locales) joined forces to launch The Inclusive Market Alliance for Rural Entrepreneurs.

Building on Land TenureIn the mid-2000s, Mercy Corps successfully worked with smallholder farmers in Guatemala to attain tenure to the land they lived and worked onHelping them increase agricultural productivity and income was a natural next step

SupermarketizationIn 10 years, the penetration of retail markets is reaching levels that took five decades to achieve in the USA.Agricultural Economics professor addressing CAFTA, 2006

Gaining Access to SupermarketsSelling to supermarkets offered excellent opportunities to farmers but supermarkets have requirements:Quality standardsFood safetyPredictable supplyEasier to work with preferred suppliers/ dedicated wholesalers All difficult for smallholder farmers to achieve

Enter the GDAMercy Corps, Wal-Mart and Fundacin GIL approached USAIDs Global Development Alliance ProgramThree-year, $2.2 million programUSAID: $1.1 millionWal-Mart: $600,000Mercy Corps: $500,000

How it worksMercy Corps: training on farming techniques, diversify to more market-oriented crops, increase productivity Fundacin GIL: post-harvest techniquesWal-Mart: share information on standards, volumes needed and prices; buy from farmers if standards are met

Results (1)Catering to formal-sector clients: Farmers in the program have raised their sales to retail markets by over 600% since 2008; formal market sales now account for over 60% of their total. Increased production: Overall production by these groups has increased by 56% in economic terms. Income earned per unit of land has increased by an average of 25%.

Results (2)Increased quality: An average of 98.3% of delivered produce has been accepted on quality terms by retail market buyers in the past two years.Job creation: Successful farmers hire workers. Farmers in this program have hired over 1,300 people as their operations grow.

Results (3)Sustainability and community benefit: According to surveys carried out in 2010, 37% of farm profits from this program are re-invested in continuing and increasing production; the remainder is used for family and community benefit, such as schooling, improved housing, health care, etc.Benefits to women: Though most farms in Guatemala are owned and managed by men, 30% of program participants are women. Ten percent of participating lead farmers are women.

Success FactorsChoose the right participantsAggregate producersRespond to the marketFocus on qualityYear-round productionBusiness principlesOutreach to womenStrategic partners

www.mercycorps.org

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