PrintSend to friend

Abelardo Villacura has been sowing and tilling a seven-hectare plot of land near Talca in central Chile for as long as he can remember.

The 46-year-old Villacura was raised in the fields, working alongside his father while cultivating tomatoes, onions, lettuce and watermelons, among other fruits and vegetables. 

Villacura is proud of his heritage, but his two children will not be following in his footsteps. Despite its virtues, farming for a living is an unpredictable endeavor, especially for small local producers like Villacura.

“The market varies widely,” he says. “You get there two hours before and the prices are good, two hours later the prices drop.”

Until recently, farmers like Villacura could only try to get to market first and hope for the best. However, now a group of small farming operations around Talca have a new outlet for their produce.

Walmart Chile, in partnership with INDAP, Chile’s governmental agency for small framers, launched in November last year an ambitious plan to make local farmers direct suppliers of produce to Walmart’s Lider supermarkets.

The program aims to provide market access and technical training while providing a stable income for farmers, explained Manuel Larraín, purchasing manager for fruits and vegetables at Walmart Chile.

“We’re trying to arrive directly to the producer so that he’s prepared to sell his product to any market,” said Larraín. “The other side of the project is trying to pull these farmers out of poverty by opening economic channels for them.”

The project began with around 30 farmers in Talca and Curicó in the fertile Maule region of Chile’s Central Valley, and based on its initial success has expanded to Iquique in the north and Punta Arenas in the South.

The project may eventually be introduced to farms around Santiago, but the greater challenge lies in the country’s less populated regions.

So far Lider couldn’t be happier with the response, but the ultimate objective is to give farmers the necessary tools so that the free flow of produce from field to market evolves on its own.

That means farmers must relearn nearly everything they know about growing and harvesting fruits and vegetables.

Together, INDAP and Lider work with farmers on soil management, water usage, proper usage of pesticides and warehousing. These aren’t details Lider takes lightly, said Larraín.

“Collectively, there are a series of steps you need to take before you can begin to supply a market,” he said. “You have to lay the groundwork in training, culture, and ways of working.”

Though only a few months into the project, the early success has been especially gratifying for Loreto Agurto, head of INDAP’s Productive Partnerships (Alianzas Productivas) program.

Back in the 1990s, the agency began experimenting with strategic alliances to link businesses with famers, but these programs have done little to improve sales or reduce poverty.

In 2008, however, INDAP created its Productive Partnerships program designed to help farmers raise their productivity by pairing them with companies producing wine, fruits and vegetables.

The program expanded strongly last year and currently there are 60 such partnerships between farmers and companies, but Lider is the agency’s only partnership with a supermarket chain.  

Under the agreement, INDAP promises its technical expertise to farmers and Lider guarantees a market and reliable income for at least three years.

“We can guarantee farmers a sure sale at a price that is considerably higher than what they earn at the local market, and in return Lider is getting a better and local product,” said Agurto.

As it happens, just as Walmart was introducing its sustainability projects across the globe, including in Chile, INDAP was developing its own bottom-up approach. At the same time, Villacura and a group of Talca farmers were looking for ways to open dialogue with businesses.

The confluence of shared interests and opportune timing made Lider an easy choice, explained Agurto.

“Our goal is to enable farmers to fly with their own wings,” she said. “This program gives them a chance to do that.”

Among the biggest advantages of the partnership, as Villacura sees it, is the elimination of the middleman. It’s a benefit shared by local farmers and supermarkets alike.

Without the middleman, farmers avoid complicated business entanglements and the supermarkets can pass the savings on to their customers.

Walmart also pays in cash within 30 days, and in seven days for some fruits and vegetables, which is practically unheard of in the business, said Gustavo Vetterlein, ethical sourcing country manager for Walmart Chile.

For some perspective, the typical wholesaler-to-supermarket arrangement might not put money in a farmer’s pocket for up to 90 days. For the farmer, the security of cash in hand is the difference between living in and out of debt.

No matter how successful the partnership becomes, Lider will continue importing a significant portion of its produce. However, through the INDAP program the supermarket has already increased to 16 percent its stock of local produce with plans to raise that to 25 percent in the future.

Villacura dismisses the idea that farmers are the sole beneficiaries. Buying local produce isn’t altruistic benevolence by the supermarket, it’s an investment - after all, customers prefer locally grown produce. 

“Take the example of the tomato,” he began. “Before you could only find northern varieties in the supermarket, like the Limache, which has a different taste. Now you can buy the Talcino tomato, which is fresher and, let’s be honest, it’s juicer.”

Aaron Nelsen is a freelance journalist based in Santiago