Corrie MacColl launches program to improve farmers' lives

MEYOMESSALA, Cameroon—An initial group of small rubber farmers in Cameroon are starting to work with Corrie MacColl Ltd. through a program to improve their lives and their agricultural production.

This is a big job that will take years to accomplish.

But the rubber company is pledging millions of dollars to improve the lives of thousands of families who live and work near their two Sudcam and Hevecam plantations in Cameroon.

"There are 500 million smallholders around the world, and 6 million of those produce natural rubber," said Ryan Wiener, global head of sustainable development and strategic marketing with Corrie MacColl. "These smallholders face some of the biggest issues the world has right now, both environmentally and socially."

Corrie MacColl developed the Cameroon Outgrower Programme with the idea of helping small rubber farmers improve their agricultural skills. This will benefit the company through higher rubber yields that farmers sell to the firm. This extra rubber means more money in farmers' pockets and improved standards of living.

Helping these small farmers learn about sustainable agriculture methods also helps protect against deforestation, Wiener said.

"What they do is slash and burn," Wiener said about some small farmers looking to clear their properties to grow crops. "Their farming practices are as bad as they can be. What this does is it creates a negative impact on the world's environment, especially when it comes to climate change."

On the social side, educating farmers on improved farming methods not only increases their yields, but protects their lands.

"We do provide them the education. This is the important part of the program because it's just not about financing the farmers. It's about assisting them," Wiener said.

Corrie MacColl provides financial assistance in the form of plants and supplies to help farmers start growing rubber trees and other complementary crops. Money from these other so-called intercrops, grown on the same land while the rubber trees mature, provide the cash needed to repay the initial loans from Corrie MacColl. The revenue also provides some financial stability in the years leading up to rubber production when the trees are seven years old, Wiener said.

Along with providing agricultural training, Corrie MacColl's program also aims to provide farmers financial knowledge to help them best succeed. The effort also works on the local level, with village chiefs and government officials, to secure deeds to property the farmers have historically inhabited but without the official paperwork.

The multifaceted program also connects the farmers with local cooperatives that help them sell their crops, such as beans, plantains and watermelons, to earn money while the rubber trees grow.

"The intercrops that we're growing will provide very much needed immediate impact in the form of income security," Wiener said.

Those farmers who demonstrate success on the agricultural side also are eligible to eventually add a livestock component to their farms—either pigs or chickens. Raising these animals on the farmland can further supplement the farmers' incomes.

An average investment by Corrie MacColl is about $1,000 per hectare, and farms can be up to two hectares in size to take part in the program, Wiener said. The exact amount a farmer borrows is based on his farm size. One hectare is about 2.5 acres.

About 200 to 250 farmers will be aided this year as Corrie MacColl rolls out the program starting at Sudcam in Meyomessala.

The total investment will run about $28 million and eventually aid 13,000 smallholders near the company's two plantations in Cameroon. A total of 27,000 hectares of what Corrie MacColl calls degraded land are targeted for revitalization.

By the time all 13,000 farms are working under the program, the company anticipates an estimated $38 million in annual added farmer revenue through the additional rubber production. A total of 13.5 million rubber trees will be planted over time.

The program also creates a credit risk assessment through a digital credit service company called LendXS for each smallholder to help them succeed. Corrie MacColl also is working with Proforest, a non-profit group that developed a social and environmental assessment guide used by participating farms.

"At the end of the day, we are trying to bring these farmers out of poverty, so we don't expect them to be star credit people. However, it's a great tool to have to understand who we need to monitor more, who we need to give better assistance to," Wiener said.

Corrie MacColl started working on the program in 2019, and hopes that the effort can one day be replicated not only by other rubber companies, but also by others in the agricultural industry. The company has been hesitant to share specifics with the outside world as it works to perfect the program, but hopes to one day be able to open access to a proven approach.

Inviting multiple stakeholders—including those involved with microfinancing, credit assessment and non-governmental organizations—to the panning process has created a strong model, Wiener said.

"We're not looking for a quick fix. We are looking for sustained impact on these farmers to increase the yields on their farms, which will provide more income, which will elevate them out of poverty while removing the need for them to cause any further environmental damage like deforestation," Wiener said.

Corrie MacColl estimates about 200 to 250 farmers already are registered to participate, with a goal of planting across 300 hectares during the first year. That number will increase to 650 next year and 950 the following year. The program will peak at 2,000 hectares per year and take a total of 15 years to reach the 27,000-hectare goal.

Corrie MacColl, a subsidiary of Halcyon Agri Corp. Ltd., said the program works toward achieving United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals regarding poverty, education, climate, work and economic growth.

Along with providing revenue for small farmers near their plantations, the additional trees will sequester carbon generated on non-forested land, Corrie MacColl said.

Farmers accepted into the program must not have practiced deforestation since 2018 to align with the company's policy. Corrie MacColl will use satellite photography to confirm lands have not been cleared before allowing participation.

Program participants also receive education on sustainable and high-yield farming practices as well as financial management.

"Upon success in Cameroon, the same model can be rolled out across the wider Halcyon ecosystem of companies," Lee Chestnutt, CEO of Corrie MacColl Plantations, said in a statement.