We are very proud to be featured in this case study, which reflects the considerable effort that went into the design and implementation of an investment fund with explicit financial and social goals. Too often, social and developmental objectives are dressed up in a mixture of florid language and random indicators, rather than being defined in detail and, crucially, built into the governance mechanisms of the fund.
We recently made our first investment through the AACF in a family-owned and managed Kenyan floriculture business, Wilmar Flowers. Wilmar is unusual among floriculture business in that it uses groups of smallholder farmers for flower production, as opposed to the industry "factory farming" standard of acre upon acre of plastic greenhouses where the chief factors of production - irrigation, temperature, nutrition and pest control - are controlled with the utmost precision. As a result of our investment, Wilmar will increase its number of smallholder producers, further develop its product range, and become a leader in an alternative method of flower production.
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