BCTA MEMBERSHIP STATUS
Alumni

SECTOR
Agriculture, Food & Beverage

HEADQUARTERS
United Kingdom

REGION OF INITIATIVE
Asia & Pacific

SDG CONTRIBUTION

RELATED NEWS

Ethical food sourcing company Coconut Merchant joined BCtA in December 2018 with a commitment to focus on sourcing food products from underserved communities and farmers in developing countries to provide sustainable income, and new routes for their products to international markets. Since starting operations in 2014, Coconut Merchant has seen rapid growth, supported by growing demand for healthy, natural products. They now have the world’s largest range of coconut products and are distributed in major supermarkets, department stores and online retailers in the United Kingdom.

With ethical sourcing core to their business since their inception, BCtA membership has formalised their commitment to expand and support the industrialization of 12 small scale suppliers in Sri Lanka and Thailand by 2022. They have also committed to directly purchase food products from 52 small to medium farmers to provide sustainable incomes in the selected markets, amongst other plans to boost cooperatives and opportunities for trade with small holder famers. If successful, this will have a direct positive impact on the lives of over 10,000 people, simply through the commitment of one company.

For many small farmers in developing countries, it is difficult to compete with large scale providers of food products in local and international markets. These farmers often have no reach beyond their local communities, and they rely on selling their products to wholesalers who may not repurchase their products, or will assign low prices to the farmers’ produce.  Coconut Merchant’s commitments provides them access to regular purchase orders and income security, allowing them to plan and invest in future of their families.

With global competition for export markets intensifying, the farmers do not have the resources needed to sustainably grow their businesses and income.  Again, Coconut Merchant’s commitments enables them to keep up with global demand trends and production standards, allowing them to remain competitive.

Viewing the challenges faced by farmers in Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines, Coconut Merchant was driven to develop a business model where all parties in the supply chain will benefit. They are driven by the mantra “Trade not Just Aid”; acknowledging that there are times when aid is needed, but focusing on developing models that would allow for sustainable economic development through true trade partnerships.  By their model, ultimately farmers are empowered with more selling leverage and support to create new and innovative products that can join the global supply chain.