http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org daily 1 2009-11-25T19:27:52Z http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/international/ajddigue-womens-argan-cooperative Zoubida Charrouf founded the Ajddigue cooperative in 1997 to mechanize argan oil production and thereby widen the market for the oil, generate new work opportunities to local women, and provide new protections to the argan groves. Originally considered a marginal business, the cooperative today has 60 Moroccan woman members and continues to grow. No publisher sherry 2010-03-23T21:49:02Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/international/akiwenzies-fish “You can only sell bad fish to a person once,” says Andrew Akiwenzie, “but your ability to sell good fish to people is unlimited.” That, in a nutshell, is the business strategy of Akiwenzie’s Fish, a sole proprietorship he runs with his wife Natasha. The enterprise is dedicated to catching, smoking, and distributing high-quality fish like perch, trout, and whitefish caught right outside their home in Cape Croker. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T12:15:23Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/u.s.-based/anna-marie-seafood “You need technology to create quality,” says Lance Nacio, a 38-year-old Cajun and wild shrimp fisherman from Terrebonne Bay, Louisiana. Darlene Wolnick, who works for an organization called marketumbrella.org that helps food producers like Lance do direct marketing in the region, agrees, “Lance is the most innovative shrimper we’re working with.” No publisher beth2 2009-12-18T16:27:49Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/u.s.-based/appalachian-harvest-network “How can we create a system that puts money in farmers’ pockets and puts good food on the table in an environmentally sustainable way?” asks Anthony Flaccavento, the executive director of Appalachian Sustainable Development (ASD). His answer, for dozens of farmers in southwest Virginia and northeast Tennessee, has been a program called the Appalachian Harvest Network (AHN). No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T06:51:04Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/international/cabbages-condoms Even open-minded westerners are taken aback when they walk into the original Cabbages & Condoms Restaurant (C&C) in Bangkok. Posters on the walls display prophylactics from around the world. Neat rows of multicolored condoms appear under the glass tops of dining tables. Condoms decorate lamps and flower vases in rest rooms. Bowls of “condom-mints” are presented as party favors. A sign assures customers that “our food is guaranteed not to cause pregnancy.” No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T07:51:41Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/international/cargills-ceylon-plc “This is not a corporate social responsibility program,” says Ranjit Page, CEO of Cargills (Ceylon) PLC, one of Sri Lanka’s oldest and largest businesses, “CSR is our business.” For its first 140 years, Cargills imported not only food but clothing, pharmaceuticals, and alcohol, largely to serve expatriates and the country’s urban elite. Today the company focuses on growing raw farm products and selling them within Sri Lanka. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T06:50:17Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/u.s.-based/cooperative-regions-of-organic-producer-pools-cropp “This is a social experiment disguised as a business,” says George Siemon, chief executive officer of the Cooperative Regions of Organic Producer Pools (CROPP). Today, after 20 years of this “social experiment,” CROPP has over $500 million in annual revenue, 1,300 member/owner farmers, and 500 staff. It is arguably one of the biggest and most successful organic producer cooperatives in the country. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T06:57:00Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/international/fundacion-paraguayas-financially-self-sufficient-organic-farm-school “We change peasants into rural entrepreneurs,” says Martin Burt, executive director of Fundación Paraguaya, a nonprofit foundation that since 1985 has been providing micro-lending and sustainable training to Paraguay’s farmers and other agricultural workers, as well as to women and young people. Fundación Paraguaya’s Escuela Agrícola Orgánica Financieramente Autosufficiente (Financially Self-Sufficient Organic Farm School, or “Farm School” for short) offers a solid high school education focusing on strong agricultural practices, business skills, and entrepreneurship. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T07:33:41Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/u.s.-based/greenmarket “Our mission is twofold: keep small farms viable and provide good food to all New York City communities regardless of income level,” says Michael Hurwitz, director of greenmarket, a thriving network of 49 farmers markets in the city. Greenmarket began with 12 farmers in an empty lot in the heart of Midtown Manhattan in 1976, and has since grown into the nation’s largest open air farmers market program, with markets in all five boroughs. It supports small farmers who grow near New York City by showcasing their locally grown products and providing them with new opportunities for direct retail sales. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T12:47:50Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/u.s.-based/indian-springs-farmers-association Even though he has led the Indian Springs Farmers Association in Mississippi for almost a generation, Ben Burkett views himself first and foremost as a farmer. On the 255-acre farm that has been in his family for more than a century, he grows 16 types of vegetables and herbs and manages pine timber. “I really enjoy what I do, although I haven’t got rich at it. I started off in conventional cotton, transferred into corn, soybeans, and wheat. While we always had a vegetable contract when I was growing up, I only transitioned over to vegetables in my own farm a little more than ten years ago.” But Ben’s most important crop is farmer empowerment. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T07:52:41Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/u.s.-based/intervale-center “Why not grow Vermont’s fresh food in Vermont, and do it sustainably?” That was the question preoccupying Will Raap in the 1980s when he had a small garden shop and catalogue, a compost pile, and a parcel of neglected land in Burlington. Back then, the “Intervale” referred to 350 acres that were historically important but had fallen into disuse. Based on consumer research, Will saw in the land the potential to grow at least 10% of Burlington’s fresh food at the Intervale.... No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T07:04:11Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/international/kasinthula-cane-growers-limited “Very shaky.” That’s how Brian Namata describes the financial situation now facing Kasinthula Cane Growers, Limited (KCGL), a producer-owned limited liability company where he serves as general manager. Yet KCGL also contains elements of a business model that, with a little tweaking and luck, could yet prove very successful. Growing commodity sugarcane is always hard work, but it’s especially true in Kasinthula in southern Malawi, one of the poorest regions of one of Africa’s poorest countries. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T07:41:14Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/international/kuapa-kokoo “The vision of our cooperative is to become a leading, caring, efficient farmer-based organization and the most globally recognized cooperative in cocoa production and marketing.” That’s how Paul “PCK” Buah, president of the Kuapa Kokoo Farmers Union, describes his community food enterprise’s mission in a 2007 annual report. As Ghana’s largest farmer cooperative, representing 45,000 cocoa growers, Kuapa Kokoo aims to be a “formidable Farmer-Based Organization” that can “mobilize and motivate its stakeholders to produce and market quality cocoa and cocoa products, improve members' livelihood, and satisfy consumers.” No publisher beth2 2009-12-09T12:31:32Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/u.s.-based/lorentz-meats Don’t waste time asking Mike Lorentz for advice on how to sell meat at a farmers market. “You won’t make enough money to justify being there. It’s great for a hobby, you might even break even. But you won’t turn a profit.” And, he adds with emphasis, “if isn’t profitable, it isn’t sustainable.” For Mike, size matters, even for local food. He sees several “sweet spot” business opportunities for small- and mid-scale meat processors. At the heart of Mike’s company is a 10,000 square foot processing plant, built from scratch in 2000. It is fully certified by the USDA to process by hand not only cattle but multiple species like bison, pigs, and elk. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T12:48:27Z CaseStudy http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org/case-studies/international/mavrovic-companies In 1998, when Zeljko Mavrovic entered the ring with Lennox Lewis for the heavyweight title in the National World Boxing Championship, one American reporter described him as a “mohawked mystery man with a macrobiotic diet and his own private mantra.” Even though he lost, the reporter conceded admiringly, “Mavrovic himself, far from playing the part of a walkover that had been scripted for him, proved awkward and frustrating, occasionally aggressive, and much better at handling a punch than the U.S. fight mob might have guessed.” Zeljko became a hero in his native Croatia. Many hoped for him to make a comeback, but no one expected it to be in local food. No publisher sherry 2009-12-09T12:36:02Z CaseStudy