Cacao Partnership Puts Indigenous Producers at the Heart of Growth Plan
- Aug 20
- 2 min read
20th August 2025
By Paula Perrelli dos Anjos
Amazonia Impact Ventures (AIV) has approved a working-capital loan to our newest partner: Kulkao, a processor and marketer of organic cacao in Peru. This investment promotes the export of value-added cacao derivatives, fostering the growth of sustainable agro-industrial products from the Amazon.
It also secures stable markets for 500 smallholder farmers who depend on cacao as a key livelihood source. The new partnership is designed to strengthen Kulkao’s supply chain while linking finance to measurable environmental incentives that promote forest conservation and enhance livelihoods for Indigenous producers.
“Our loan is innovative in structure: we link the capital with environmental commitments and impact KPIs,” details Aldo Soto, AIV’s Managing Director.
Kulkao supports farmers to improve farm management and boost productivity through agricultural best practices, while supporting compliance with the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
Environmental Goals
Under this agreement with AIV, Kulkao is committing to map primary forest areas beyond cacao farms, promoting forest conservation in one of the regions with the highest deforestation rates in Peru.
The alliance also targets inclusive and social growth: Kulkao will increase purchases from Indigenous producers, ensuring a minimum annual volume from organisations such as Kemito Ene and other community-based groups.
“Kulkao is pleased to partner with AIV. This partnership will support our supply of organic cocoa beans while ensuring a fair and stable income for our farmers,” declared Paul Ramirez, CEO of Kulkao.
Cacao Market
With a processing plant located in Tingo María, Huánuco, Kulkao buys from different regions and works with smallholders in the forest areas of central and eastern Peru. The AIV investment comes as Peru’s cocoa exports in 2024 nearly tripled the previous year’s result amid a sharp global price rally, reaching 4.32 times the average for 2020–2022.
Kulkao sources from remote communities across Huánuco, Junín, Ucayali, Cusco and Cajamarca, selling cocoa nibs, liquor, butter and powder, as well as chocolates, to some 150 clients in local and international markets spanning Europe, North America, Asia and Australia.
The company collected around 1,300 metric tonnes in 2024 and expects to lift volumes to more than 2,000 metric tonnes by 2025. By linking sustainable production with premium markets, AIV collaborates to deepen the impact across the Amazon.
“We reinforce producer practices, bringing forest conservation and better opportunities for the people who live and depend on the Amazon,” concludes Aldo.
Bringing Kulkao into our portfolio guarantees that sustainable cacao from hundreds of smallholder farmers finds markets on the global stage.
#SustainableFinance #ImpactInvesting #EmergingMarkets #PeruBusiness #OrganicCacao #IndigenousFarming #EthicalSourcing #SocialImpactFinance #LATAMGrowth
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