Danone and Mars launch investment fund to support smallholder farmers

Danone has announced a new collaboration with Mars to launch an investment fund called the Livelihoods Fund for Family Farming.

It aims to help companies worldwide to learn how to sustainably source the materials they need from smallholder farmers, while also delivering large-scale social and economic impact to farm owners and their communities.

A total of 120 million euros (89.12 million pounds) will be invested over the next ten years to implement projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America, helping more than 200,000 smallholder farmers and two million people to improve the sustainability of their crops.

It comes at a time when there is great need for increased investment in global food security and agriculture, given the rapid growth in the global population.

Franck Riboud, chairman of Danone's board of directors, said: "The challenges of sustainable agriculture can be met only if we are able to develop radically different approaches, combining economic, environmental and social objectives."

This comes after Danone announced the successful launch of a 1.3 billion euro dual-tranche bond issue last month.