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Best Practices voor een duurzame toekomst
03 maart 2007

DLV Plant puts in free expertise for farmers in developing countries

For DLV Plant the agreement with Agriterra, signed this week, is a way of expressing its corporate social responsibility. As Jacco van der Wekken puts it: "We want to show our commitment to sustainability. Many of our 150 consultants dispose of specialized knowledge and are interested in transferring it to developing countries."
This year DVL Plant is available for at least five missions to agricultural projects in developing countries. Missions will take one or two weeks. The only reservation DVL Plant makes, is that these missions shall not be prosecuted in countries where the firm already carries out commercial activities. Thus, countries like Serbia, Russia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania are excluded.
DLV Plant not only disposes of knowledge in the field of agricultural products, but also in circumstantial aspects such as marketing, education and research. For Agriterra, an organisation that stimulates cooperation between farmers in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Central and Eastern Europe. to strengthen their capacities, this kind of expertise is quite valuable.
Jacco van der Wekken: "The assignment for our consultant in Sulawesi was nominated by Agriterra. The quality of the produced fruits and vegetables fluctuates and fails to meet the required standards. This is partly due to problems with soil fertility. Hence, cultivating advice is required." The DLV Plant consultant will also visit a small scale farmers organisation in the remote area of Merbabu, suffering from meagre harvests, caused by erosion and protracted use of chemical fertilizers. Solutions are sought for in cooperation with the agricultural university of Bogor, Indonesia.
P+ webtip: DLV