CorpoCampo
Green jobs for post-conflict Colombia
After 50 years of conflict, Colombia’s Amazon regions are at a crossroads: grow with nature’s value in mind or turn to unsustainable consumption, resource extraction and environmental degradation. For local companies, sustainably harvesting some of the country’s agricultural products presents a unique opportunity.
THE COMPANY
CorpoCampo is a family-owned natural food company that sources açaí berry and hearts of palm from over 500 hectares (about 1,236 acres) of critical rainforest in the Colombian Amazon. The company employs vulnerable Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities in areas affected by the violence and poverty caused by the country’s internal conflict.
THE INVESTMENT
A 5-year, US$ 500,000 loan will enable CorpoCampo to expand one of its production plants and install a new açaí pulp-processing facility.
THE IMPACT
The infrastructure upgrades will enable the company to catalyze a larger US$ 12 million investment focused on land restoration. Combined, these investments will create an estimated 500 new full-time jobs and 3,800 seasonal jobs. To receive an interest rate reduction of up to 2 percent per year, CorpoCampo will provide technical assistance to and source açaí and/or palm hearts from communities engaged with Conservation International’s Naturamazonas program, in each case advancing Conservation International’s broader conservation objectives in the Putumayo region of Colombia.