UK PACT Hits the Ground Running in Peru’s Amazon
- Sep 4
- 2 min read
Thursday, 04th September 2025
By Paula Perrelli dos Anjos
Last week, Amazonia Impact Ventures (AIV) joined the inaugural field trip of the flagship UK PACT programme. Over the next two years, backed by a £1.18 million budget, the project aims to boost the competitiveness of Peruvian non-timber forest products (NTFPs) – including aguaje, camu camu, and other high-value species - in global markets.
Aldo Soto, AIV’s Co-founder and Managing Director, and Nelson Torres, AIV’s Investment Officer, travelled to Pucallpa, the capital of the Ucayali region, to meet four bio businesses set to benefit from UK PACT, evaluate their financial capacity and requirements, and hear first-hand about the challenges they face.
“A key strength of our business is being on the ground with our partners, seeing what it takes to produce sustainably in the forest. We also recognise the immense barriers they face in accessing international markets,” detailed Soto.
Organic Production
One of the enterprises they visited is a cooperative producing organic camu camu on the banks of the River Ucayali. The fruit is recognised for having one of the highest natural concentrations of vitamin C in nature. Aldo and Nelson visited one of the farms that the Cooperative AgroIndustrial Yarinacocha (Coopay) sources from, and they met many of the members.
“We assessed the business, offered tailored technical assistance and will deliver an investment memo to help them qualify for impact-linked finance from us or from other investors in the project,” explained Aldo.
Engagement Effort
AIV is part of a consortium in the UK Pact tasked with strengthening value chains and securing trade agreements, alongside Rainforest Alliance, Terra Nuova, Nature and Culture International (NCI) and Peru’s Association of Exporters (ADEX).
Later in the trip, AIV team joined the mission with members from RA, TN and the British Embassy in Lima to visit the 4 enterprises in the region, learning about their challenges and how they could be supported by the consortium in the next couple of years.
Everyone will work to ensure harvested products meet international standards of quality, legality and sustainability. The first field trip has set the tone for a programme that will deliver measurable impact for communities, biodiversity, and climate resilience.
UK PACT’s targets
A 20% rise in both sales revenue and volumes for SMEs and cooperatives;
Four new trade agreements, including two with UK partners;
Expansion of sustainable management across thousands of hectares of tropical forest.
We are grateful to our partners and supporters: UK Embassy in Lima, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). The UK PACT programme is delivered by Palladium International.
#FirstFieldTrip #AmazonConservation #SustainableTrade #ImpactInvesting #ClimateFinance #ForestEconomy #NonTimberForestProducts #NatureBasedSolutions
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