IDB Invest, a member of the IDB Group, has granted a loan, with mixed financing from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Climate-Smart Agriculture Fund, of up to $3.1 million to Agrocacay, S.A.S. (Agrocacay), to plant and maintain more than 100,000 cacay trees, a tree native to Colombia’s Orinoco region.
Kahai, S.A.S. is acting as guarantor for this operation.
The financing structure is adapted to the time required for the cacay trees to start producing.
The transaction will support the development of the cacay nut industry and its by-products.
The transaction, with a term of up to 12 years, will enable Agrocacay to continue to grow its operations, securing a reliable source of raw material for Kahai, a group company that processes the nut into finished product and derivative products for marketing.
The cacay fruit is a type of nut with a high protein content that can be consumed as a snack between meals, or processed into flour and oil that has nutritional benefits, as a food supplement, and cosmetic benefits.
This project is expected to reforest more than 400 hectares of land, as well as promote climate change adaptation and mitigation by reforesting degraded land with a native tree, and is expected to capture 62,250 tons of CO2e over the life of the plantations.
This transaction potentially contributes to eight United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): End Poverty (SDG 1), Zero Hunger (SDG 2), Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8), Reducing Inequalities (SDG 10), Responsible Production and Consumption (SDG 12), Climate Action (SDG 13), and Life of Terrestrial Ecosystems (SDG 15) and Partnerships to Achieve the Goals (SDG 17).
IDB Invest will support Agrocacay with a social and environmental risk analysis, as well as the design of an action plan that will be monitored for the duration of the project. About IDB Invest IDB Invest, a member of the IDB Group, is a multilateral development bank committed to promoting the economic development of its member countries in Latin America and the Caribbean through the private sector.
IDB Invest finances sustainable enterprises and projects to achieve financial results and maximize economic, social and environmental development in the region.
With a portfolio of $13.1 billion in assets under management and 385 clients in 25 countries, IDB Invest provides innovative financial solutions and advisory services that respond to the needs of its clients in a variety of sectors.
About Agrocacay, S.A.S. Agrocacay is the subsidiary of Kahai SAS, a company dedicated to the sustainable development of Cacay crops to ensure a self-sustaining supply of the nut.
About Grupo Kahai, S.A.S. Kahai is the first company in the world to industrialize the Cacay, an Amazonian tree that produces very good tasting nuts for confectionery, from which cosmetic oil and flour of high nutritional value are extracted.
Its mission is to establish Cacay as a sustainable economic development alternative for Colombia.
Kahai promotes the cultivation of Cacay, linking more than 500 farming families in its supply chain.
