Beyond Beans is the foundation established in April 2020 when Cocoanect B.V. integrated with the Export Trading Group (ETG), one of the world’s leading traders and processors of agricultural commodities. The Beyond Beans Foundation is fully dedicated to developing and implementing projects across ETG’s commodity supply chains in collaboration with partner companies, NGOs and government agencies. The Foundation’s rapidly expanding 100+ FTE operational team consists of a multidisciplinary team of managers and field staff with experience in a wide range of topics, from tackling child labour to climate-smart agroforestry and promoting gender equity. The Beyond Beans Foundation has its headquarters at ETG’s Regional Trade Office in Amstelveen, The Netherlands, and its core programmes and activities are implemented through subsidiary foundations in Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Uganda, Togo, and Ecuador.
At Beyond Beans we believe that the world of today has the knowledge, people, and tools in place to build profitable and self-sustaining communities, where farming is regarded as a respected profession and sustainable entrepreneurship is the norm. Beyond Beans aims to be a catalyst in achieving this vision, by connecting the right stakeholders and introducing innovative solutions from other sectors to agricultural supply chains.
Our Work in Numbers
100,000
Rural farmer households being supported with agronomic & climate trainings, seedlings, and cash premiums
400
Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) groups established with a focus on gender empowerment.
50,000
farmer households covered by our Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation System.
250,000
indigenous tree species being planted in reforestation projects per year.
Empowering Women and Tackling the Roots of Child Labour Through Village Savings and Loan Associations
VSLA-CHILD brings together the idea of village savings groups with the importance of child protection. Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) are formed amongst 15-30 community members who meet on a weekly basis to collectively save funds and take out loans at low interest rates from their collective savings. We use this community-based platform as a safe space to organise discussions and trainings around gender empowerment and child labour, opening a window for dialogue as to how such problems can be tackled.
Read more about this project here.
Creating an Eco-Corridor along Côte d’Ivoire’s Hana River
The Hana River passes between Côte d’Ivoire’s Tai National Park and neighbouring Grebo-Krahn National Park in Liberia. We are working with farmers in the area to create a 20-metre natural barrier between their cocoa farms and the river to promote biodiversity and the regeneration of natural ecosystems. With innovative approaches such as Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES), farmers receive in-kind compensation in the form of fertilisers and seedlings and can thereby increase yields while leaving the 20-metre barrier untouched.
Read about the experience of one of our farmers here.
Income Diversification Through Cocoa Juice
Currently a typical cocoa growing household in Ghana earns around USD 2,290 per year – less than half of a living income. Our cocoa juice project is raising incomes for farmers by up to 30% per kilo of cocoa beans, providing an additional income stream by turning cocoa pulp (usually an overlooked waste product) into fruit juice. This juice is already being sold to consumers across the Netherlands by our partners Kumasi Drinks.
The project also has a strong emphasis on women’s empowerment, as women are specifically targeted as collectors, processors and marketers of this new cocoa juice.
Read more about this project here.
Improved Cookstoves Supporting Forests and Farmer Livelihoods
Our ProcarBOOH project in Côte d’Ivoire aims to support forest conservation and improve livelihoods for farming communities by stimulating the commercial distribution of improved cookstoves.
The cookstoves we distribute not only reduce the risk of deforestation as they require 45% less biofuel, but they also reduce household air pollution by 70%, leading to improvements in health. Further, they help households save money on fuel expenditure and reduce the time spent collecting firewood.
Read more about this project here.
A Landscape Approach to Sustainable Cocoa
Our Accessible Soils and Sustainable Environments (ASASE) project is working towards a climate-smart cocoa sector where forests and natural ecosystems can thrive alongside sustainable cocoa production. Over the course of four years, we are working with 5,000 farmers in Ghana’s Ashanti and Eastern regions to tackle deforestation, rehabilitate aging cocoa farms, and restore natural forests.
Read more about this project here.
Our Partners
Beyond Beans Foundation
Van Heuven Goedhartlaan 7C
1181LE Amstelveen, The Netherlands
info@beyondbeans.org
KVK 77750047
