PRESS RELEASE

Corrie MacColl launches the Cameroon Outgrower Programme: Empowering 13,000 rural farmers

• 13,000 smallholder farmers to be equipped with education and US$28 million in financing to develop multi-crop farms around a core crop of rubber.
• 27,000 hectares of degraded land to be reforested with rubber trees to produce 100% traceable, high quality rubber and liquid latex.
• US$38 million of added farmer annual income generated from rubber production at maturity.
• Long-term commitment to accelerate several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

01 June 2021 – Corrie MacColl, a subsidiary of global natural rubber supply chain manager Halcyon Agri, has announced the launch of its Cameroon Outgrower Programme. The programme will equip 13,000 smallholder farmers in Cameroon with education and US$28 million in financing to develop 27,000 hectares of multi-crop farms around a core crop of 100% traceable rubber. The 15-year programme will provide food and income security to rural communities by increasing yields on degraded or low-yielding farmland. Cash crops will provide US$139 million of total crop revenues for farmers to sustain livelihood and working capital needs until the rubber generates US$38 million of added annual income.

Ryan Wiener, Global Head, Sustainable Development and Strategic Marketing commented: “There are 500 million smallholder farmers globally of which 6 million produce rubber. Developing these livelihoods holds the key to addressing some of the world’s most pressing social and environmental issues, and we can do this through education, support and providing the financing to access quality planting materials. This way, we increase yields on existing land, removing the need to deforest while providing necessary added food and income security. We will start with 13,000 families and with sufficient scale, we hope our successful model is replicated across all smallholder-based agricultural industries.”

Lee Chestnutt, CEO, Corrie MacColl Plantations commented: “We are proud to have entered into a programme of this scale where we have the opportunity to support rural Cameroonians in their aspirations to become business owners. Upon success in Cameroon, the same model can be rolled out across the wider Halcyon ecosystem of companies.”

Accelerating the UN Sustainable Development Goals

The programme accelerates several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including No Poverty, Quality Education, Climate Action, and Decent Work and Economic Growth. The planting of 13.5 million rubber trees will sequester large quantities of carbon on non-forested lands. These farms are aligned with the requirements of Corrie MacColl’s Sustainability Policy and have successfully passed the social and environmental assessment guide developed by international non-profit organisation, Proforest. This includes lands that fulfil the no-deforestation commitment from December 2018, as verified through a satellite imagery tool. Page 2 of 3 The approval of land titles and the financing of resources drives sustained socio-economic development in rural communities. This is facilitated by local cooperatives and a digital smallholder credit risk assessment and loan origination tool developed by LendXS, the digital credit services platform of Financial Access. The tool allows the programme’s lending partner to efficiently process the individual farmer’s loan applications and to accurately assess and track the individual repayment capacity of each farmer participating in the programme. Candidates also receive classroom and practical education on sustainable, high-yielding agronomical practices, in addition to financial management lessons conducted by banking professionals.

Abraham Baffoe, Africa Regional Director of Proforest commented: “Forests are integral to the livelihood and ways of life of the population of local communities in the wider landscape of Corrie MacColl’s operations in Cameroon. Proforest is excited to have provided a guide in support of Corrie MacColl’s Outgrower Programme that provides access to finance, technology and education necessary to help the local farmers transition to a sustainable agriculture model, an important first step to addressing rural poverty while protecting local forests and contributing to meeting global climate goals.”

Eelko Bronkhorst, CEO of LendXS commented: “LendXS is happy to support Corrie MacColl with the digital tools needed to facilitate the mobilization of finance for smallholder farmers in their Cameroon Outgrower Programme. The Programme sets a terrific example of how through an innovative partnership with stakeholders, Corrie MacColl’s objectives for deforestation-free sourcing of rubber are realized whilst improving the economic and social livelihoods of rural communities.”

More information on the Cameroon Outgrower Programme can be found here: link

About Corrie MacColl: Corrie MacColl drives positive change for the rubber industry. We ensure fair and sustainable value creation from the tree to the customer. Our rubber is grown, sourced and produced to the highest quality, matching supply and demand with as little impact as possible. As a sustainable model corporate citizen, we are extensively invested in ecological conservation, economic growth and social development. Demand for made-to-measure rubber for use in diverse, premium and specialty applications is fulfilled by our entrenched position in key distribution markets and custom-made delivery programmes to customers. Our products are delivered to over 1,000 customers in 350 cities through our second-to-none logistical assets, flanked by our dedicated technical advisory and support unit. Corrie MacColl is a member of the Halcyon Agri Group. www.corrie-maccoll.com

About Proforest: Proforest is a non-profit group of organisations that support companies, governments, civil society and other organisations to work towards the responsible production and sourcing of agricultural and forest commodities. Proforest believes that agricultural commodity production can and should have positive environmental and social outcomes in places where the commodities are produced. We therefore help companies to take action on responsible production and sourcing, both within and beyond their supply chains. www.proforest.net

About LendXS : LendXS BV is a fintech company established by Financial Access Consulting Services, the former ING Bank emerging markets banking advisory business. LendXS provides financial institutions with lowcost, high-impact digital credit process and risk solutions. The main objective of LendXS is to accelerate rural access to finance through affordable digital technology. The LendXS tools include easy-to-use digital workflow management, data collection and loan monitoring technology, as well as crop-specific credit scoring tools. The LendXS digital solutions allow rural and other lenders to improve their credit risk analyses and to make faster, better-informed loan decisions at lower costs