Annex 10 | Graduation to third party investors

Overview of projects graduated to third-party investors

Scaling climate-resilient rice farming in Cambodia: Amru Rice’s journey with DFCD 

Introduction

Since 2013, Amru has worked closely with smallholder farmers, introducing organic rice production and contract farming to improve their livelihoods. But as climate change threatens agriculture in the Lower Mekong Basin, Amru needed to scale up regenerative practices to secure its supply chain and strengthen resilience. Securing investment in a Least Developed Country (LDC) environment made this even more challenging. With support from SNV through the Dutch Fund for Climate and Development (DFCD), Amru is now on the path to becoming a leader in regenerative agriculture in Cambodia. 

Project Background and Early Challenges

The Lower Mekong Basin faces extreme weather patterns—floods and prolonged droughts—posing a direct threat to farmers. As one of Cambodia’s top ten rice exporters and the largest organic rice exporter (with 38% of its traded rice certified organic), Amru saw the urgency of adopting climate-smart agriculture. However, transitioning thousands of smallholder farmers to regenerative practices required technical expertise, financial backing, and a scalable model—challenges that investors often hesitate to take on in LDCs. 

Origination Facility's Strategic Approach

Recognizing the potential of Amru Rice’s regenerative agriculture model, the DFCD Origination Facility stepped in with technical assistance, grant funding, and strategic guidance. The objective was clear: de-risk the investment by demonstrating the economic and environmental viability of climate-smart rice farming. 

Origination Facility (OF) activities focused on: 

• Developing a regenerative agriculture (RA) package that works for smallholder farmers and building Amru’s capacity to train cooperatives in these methods. 

• Conducting a baseline assessment of soil organic carbon and feasibility analysis for developing a voluntary carbon market (VCM) project. 

• Supporting Amru’s management in integrating gender equality, social inclusion, environmental and social safeguards into its operation and supply chains.  

• Supporting Amru in developing  a comprehensive sustainable regenerative agriculture business plan with a defined long-term value proposition for the company.

Transformative Changes

Implementing regenerative agriculture in Cambodia presented challenges. Farmers needed convincing that these practices would lead to better yields and income. DFCD’s support helped Amru refine its model, ensuring that RA benefits both organic and conventional rice farmers. The adoption of RA methods not only improved soil health but also created a more secure supply chain, reducing farmer vulnerability to climate shocks. 

Mentorship, Support, and Unveiling the Business Plan

The support from SNV enabled Amru Rice to develop a robust, investor-ready business plan. Through targeted technical assistance, the company streamlined operations, improved supply chain efficiency, and established a strong case for investment. The business plan not only quantified the climate and social benefits of Amru’s approach but also provided clear financial projections to attract impact investors. 

Building Alliances and Investor's Commitment

DFCD’s work de-risked Amru’s investment potential. Singapore-based Emerging Markets Investment Advisers (EMIA) was the first to step in, providing an undisclosed investment that strengthened Amru’s balance sheet, making it bankable for larger financiers. Following this, Amru secured term sheets from Proparco and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), positioning itself for further growth. 

Currently, Amru is seeking a $10 million investment to: 

• Build a $1.8 million biochar factory to enhance soil health and carbon sequestration. 

• Expand factory and equipment with a $4.3 million upgrade to scale production. 

• Allocate $3.9 million for working capital to support farmer recruitment and contract expansion. 

Measurable Impact

As Amru scales its regenerative agriculture efforts, it aims to: 

• Expand to 100,000 hectares of rice farmland by 2029 (60,000 ha conventional + 40,000 ha organic). 

• Certify Cambodia’s first agricultural carbon credits by 2025-26. 

• Improve 40,000 farming livelihoods while sequestering 92,000 tons of CO₂ annually. 

Reflecting on this, Song Saran, CEO of Amru Rice, emphasized the critical role of partnerships in driving sustainable transformation: 

"We're proud to be at the forefront of promoting innovative climate adaptation practices such as regenerative agriculture and sustainable rice farming. Our partnership with the DFCD and the implementation of regenerative agriculture practices in several provinces are a significant step towards transforming the rice sector in Cambodia." 

Looking Forward

As Amru expands its regenerative farming practices, it can serve as a model for other agribusinesses looking to navigate the challenges of climate change while remaining profitable. Looking ahead, the company aims to deepen its impact, bringing more farmers into sustainable rice supply chains and continuing to attract investment for climate-resilient agriculture.  

Growing business opportunities in the Amazon from native ingredients: WWF and Concepta Ingredients in Brazil

Introduction

There is a clear link between the health of the Amazon and the health of the planet. But many communities living there rely on economic activities which damage its vital forests. It is crucial then to support businesses which can provide livelihoods for these communities, while protecting the surrounding ecosystems. Concepta Ingredients is one such business helping this to happen at scale. 

Environmental Context 

The trees of the Amazon act like the lungs of the planet. It is home to millions of species, and is one of Earth's last refuges for jaguars, harpy eagles, and pink river dolphins. It is also flanked by crucial, but less highlighted, biomes in the Cerrado and Caatinga. All of these areas are at risk from deforestation, as forests are cleared for more and more cattle grazing pasture and cropland. This can displace local communities, and habitats for species. 

The business

Concepta Ingredients works together with the communities who have traditionally collected local superfoods from the forests, like acai and cocoa, which are now globally sought after.  With their business growing, Concepta sought DFCD support for the construction of a new processing plant that would allow the introduction of unique plant-based products from Brazil to global food markets. 

Origination Facility's Strategic Approach

WWF and Concepta Ingredients co-designed a strategic income generating project to benefit local communities and families that live from and in the forest. It focussed on the sustainable utilisation, management, and conservation of natural areas for resilient food production.  

Among others, OF support went towards the following activities: 

• Feasibility studies for the building of a new factory 

• Bioprospecting of the productive potential of the surrounding regions 

• Facilitating a Community Engagement Agreement, focused on sustainability best practices, quality, traceability, and production and harvest methods

Transformative Changes

WWF worked very closely with Concepta Ingredients, giving close attention to the construction plan of their factory site, and enhancing the quality of their cooperation with their partner grower communities and families. Over the course of project implementation the forecasted impact from the business's expansion increased. At the time of graduation, the following impact figures were forecast: 

• Increasing income for 6,476 smallholders (vs. 2,100 at start of project)  

• Protecting indirectly 579,000 hectares of conserved forests under sustainable management decreasing the risk of deforestation while contributing to climate adaptation (vs. 345,000 at start of project) 

• Creating climate resilient jobs for local communities, approximately 80 direct and 100 indirect jobs 

Investment

Sabará Group, the parent company of Concepta Ingredients, were highly satisfied with the Origination project and its impact potential. In correspondence provided for the graduation meeting, they cited the DFCD's activities as key factor to their decision to inject $3.5M of equity towards building of the new factory, noting that the investment was a decision they would not have taken without Origination support.