Importaco, the European leader in the production of nuts and dried fruit, has expanded its agricultural integration programme dedicated to ensuring the responsible sourcing of its produce.
This year, the company introduced a new element to its farming integration project – established in 2013 – with the creation of its FEED agricultural programme. The programme aims to align strategies and priorities across Importaco’s different product-origin countries to guarantee the supply of raw materials with assurances relating to quality and food safety and the implementation of environmentally friendlier agricultural practices.
FEED sees Importaco carry out a rigorous process of risk assessment. The company monitors agricultural situations, draws up profiles for each crop, determines the risks related to the varieties of crop used, growing techniques, and the causes of crop defects.
Importaco collaborates with and supports farmers as part of the FEED process. The company operates business partnerships, runs training sessions for growers, provides ad hoc support to farmers, and stipulates environmental and quality requirements.
Currently, FEED is being applied in Spain, Argentina, Chile, Peru, and China. In Spain, Importaco is working with more than 100 producers across 7,500 hectares; in Latin America, 10 farmers and 10,800 hectares; and in China, 267 farmers and 1,132 hectares. In total, FEED comprises agreements with over 450 farmers, covering 10,000 hectares of farmland, and affecting the production of 35,900 tonnes of nuts and dried fruit.
Being key Importaco products, peanuts and almonds are the major focusses of the FEED programme. The company aims for 100% of its Argentinian peanuts to be responsibly sourced by 2023 and 100% of its Spanish almonds to be responsibly sourced by 2025. The FEED programme also involves the monitoring of sunflower seed and peanut crops in China, as well as corn crops in Spain.
Lucía Donnini, farm integration director at Importaco, said that “the implementation of the FEED programme is a crucial step towards more responsible agriculture, a step we are proud to be taking.”
President of Importaco, Toño Pons, commented that “the FEED programme represents Importaco’s genuine commitment to agricultural integration and thereby more environmentally friendly sourcing. At Importaco, we take quality, sustainability, and supporting our farmers very seriously.”
The expansion of Importaco’s programme to ensure responsible sourcing of its produce demonstrates further commitment since the company joined the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative in 2019.
