Envirium Life Sciences is proud to announce that Kamapim Ltd., its subsidiary in Papua New Guinea, and 1,400 partnering smallholders in the Madang Province have obtained an organic certification for Vanilla planifolia and tahitensis. The only industrial player to be active in all three major vanilla production areas in the world, Envirium can now supply organic high-quality vanilla from two main origins in Africa and Oceania.

Already Organic certified in Madagascar with the “quick curing” high-quality Bourbon vanilla from Sopral, our group has now a second sourcing of organic vanilla in the world: “Full traceability, high-quality products and conservation of the biodiversity are our main goals, says Christian Van Osselaer, Co-CEO of Envirium Life Sciences. We are aware that our clients and their own customers are keen to know that our products comply with the highest level of respect towards environment and communities”.

Kamapim Ltd. together with more than 1,394 farmers from 17 remote villages from Yikmol and Kokomav Associations in Madang have successfully become US (NOP) organically certified and are in conversion for organic certification for Australia and Europe. Certification schemes give the customer the assurance that the produce they are buying is being produced organically with full traceability.

To meet the Organic certification requirements, farmers together with Kamapim field officers learnt to use Agricultural technology on mobile phones to map farms and record data for internal control schemes.

Getting to this result has been a long process, started four years ago. Looking for an alternative to logging or mining, the clans partnered with Kamapim Ltd. in the sustainable production of high-quality vanilla. “We work with our farmers”, says Dr. Nancy Irwin, Managing Director- Kamapim Ltd. “We ask them how we can improve, teach them how they can improve. Partnering with farmers together, we can do more than normally thought possible. The Organic certification helps the farmers to access new markets and receive a premium for their vanilla, while assuring consumers that their vanilla is produced in line with Organic standards. We developed these supply chains because we have an established connection with these farmers and a history of consistent supply and demand. Assured by sustainable income, the farmers then choose to formally protect their rainforest and conserve their biodiversity”, says Nancy Irwin.

Bryan Lavate, secretary of Yikmol association, is proud that farmers were able to achieve their aim after being involved with every step of the process: “Kamapim Ltd. has trained the farmers to map, and go back to traditional ways of using land, we have passed our own laws within our conservation deeds to reinforce organic production and ways to look after our environment and water”. Likewise, Timothy Anangawe, Chair of the Kokomav Association, is enthusiastic about this new recognition: “We know working towards organic certification will show the market how good our vanilla is. I want the world to know that buying our organic vanilla is a sustainable way to support our remote community while we guard and protect our large rainforest”.

Fairly traded by Envirium Life Sciences and Kamapim Ltd. on the international market, the vanilla enables the smallholders to increase their livelihoods. Recently, a profit share was given to the associations representing the clans which they will invest back into their own communities.

The business model developed by Envirium Life Sciences in Papua New Guinea and in the other countries where it is active (Democratic Republic of Congo with the Virunga and Garamba Parks, Mangoky Ihotry in Madagascar) aims to help locals in creating more value from their land and developing sustainable revenues while contributing to the protection of nature.

KAMAPIM Ltd. KAMAPIM Ltd. is a Papua New Guinea registered company founded in 2018. Located in Madang, the company created a business model tailored for PNG local communities, based on preservation of traditional culture and the protection of large tracks of the primary rainforest.
KAMAPIM Ltd. aims to become a world-class reference in vanilla, a reliable source of traceable and high-quality products for international companies.

ENVIRIUM Life Sciences Envirium Life Sciences is an international group based in Belgium and established on 3 continents through 7 subsidiaries. “Inspired by nature, empowered by people”, ELS aims at helping small farmers to create value from their land. Based on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, ELS’s business model provides a sustainable, traceable and reliable sourcing as well as high-quality standards in the production of cocoa, chia, coffee beans, enzymes (Democratic Republic of Congo), vanilla (Madagascar and Papua New Guinea), spices and fruits (Madagascar). Almost 30 000 small farmers and their families have already chosen to embrace this sustainable change. See more on https://www.envirium.be/

PRESS CONTACT Vanessa Costanzo Tel: +32 0473 459 109 Email: vcostanzo@intothecomm.be