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Coconut Oil from Sri Lanka |
Fair Trade Organic Coconut Benefits Are Spreading Far and Wide
December 2010: Update from Sri Lanka
Gero Leson, Director of Special Operations, Kuliyapitiya, Sri Lanka
 In the spirit of Dr. Emanuel Bronner's vision of Constructive Capitalism, Dr. Bronner's began in 2005 a complex mission to source all of our main ingredients from certified Fair Trade and organic sources. These are coconut, palm, olive and mint oils that account together for over 95% of our agricultural raw materials and come from developing countries. Our goal of going organic and fair trade is to ensure that everyone along our supply chains farmers, farm workers and workers in processing - receives fair compensation. Also all farming and processing should be done in a way that minimizes harm to the environment and sustains fertility and productivity of the land by organic means. We also wanted to contribute to local development projects in our producing communities through a Fair Trade premium. |
Five years later, our Serendipol project in Sri Lanka has become the world's foremost source of certified organic and fair trade Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO). It not only supplies Dr. Bronner's growing demand for cosmetics grade coconut oil, which gives our soaps its rich and cleansing lather, but also since October 2010 Serendipol supplies premium quality oil for Dr. Bronner's own line of food grade VCO. And with resurging interest in healthy coconut food products, we also supply other socially responsible firms in the U.S. and the EU.
Back in 2005 there was no (and still is no) other significant supply of fair trade organic coconut oil; thus, we decided to make our own. After a couple years of intensive planning leading out of post-tsunami relief efforts, in 2007 we formed our subsidiary Serendipol (Pvt) Ltd. (from "Serendib" the old Arab name for Sri Lanka and the Sinhala word for coconut "pol") with our Sri Lankan partners Sonali Pandithasekera and Gordon de Silva. Serendipol took over a run-down desiccated coconut mill in Sri Lanka's "Coconut Triangle", constructed and remodeled buildings and installed new coconut processing technology. |
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 Our field staff began converting the now about 500 coconut family farms (encompassing some 8,000 acres) to organic practices. From small farms of 2-5 acres to mid-sized family farms of 100 acres or more, our contract farmers represent how Sri Lanka grows its most popular food crop. Yet these farms also demonstrate that poor land maintenance has eroded soil fertility and farm profitability.
Because Dr. Bronner's takes organic farming seriously, Serendipol initiated a program of soil maintenance that is starting to pay off for our farmers. Our own composting plant supplies organic fertilizer at cost, and our field officers along with outside experts advise on mulching, intercrops, pest control and animal husbandry. Combined, these measures are gradually increasing coconut yields by some 30-50%. Despite initial skepticism and inertia, higher yields along with the organic premium we pay, motivates our farmers to improve land stewardship and working conditions for their casual workers. Thus, our project is helping to revitalize an industry that has deteriorated in past decades but has the potential to provide a fair livelihood to a large population in rural Sri Lanka in a sustainable manner.
 At the same time, our factory has grown fast. With 160 employees we have fast become the largest agricultural employer in the neighborhood. Most of our staff lives within 2 miles from the factory. They enjoy superior compensation and working conditions, have opportunities for growth, and a constructive relationship and dialog with the management. This creates a working atmosphere that attracts workers and professionals from the surrounding area.
The factory also showcases virtually complete recycling of all process by-products and waste: husks are sold for fiber and coco peat, coconut shells generate steam in our boiler and are sold for charcoal and activated carbon, the seed cake is sold for animal feed, and the wastewater is treated and used for irrigation and groundwater recharge. Interestingly, all these markets were well established before we even started, we just have to sell the by-products. An ecologist's dream and one reason we had selected Sri Lanka.
A key element of all our fair trade projects is the "fair trade premium". Dr. Bronner's and increasingly other buyers contribute 10% on the cost of coconuts and labor into a "fair trade fund". Spending decisions are jointly made by representatives of farmers, farm workers, factory workers and the company management. As of late 2010 the Serendipol fair trade fund, which now receives some $ 250,000 per year in premium, has funded more than 150 projects, small and large, such as procuring critical medical equipment for several local hospitals, providing schools with toilets and books, as well as projects for our workers, such as home improvement funds and school supplies. The committee is now taking on the task of helping disadvantaged rural communities, often farm workers without political clout, to connect to the grid and have their own water supply at amazingly low cost. Operation and administration of the systems remain with the community. Connecting a village to power also fosters empowerment.
The respected certifying agency IMO from Switzerland has been inspecting and certifying our growers and factory under NOP and EU organic rules as well as under its "Fair for Life" fair trade program. IMO's principled and hands-on practical approach to organic and fair trade projects has also given motivation and guidance to Serendipol's journey.
With our extensive professional network in Sri Lanka and the U.S. we are now also able to support at least some of the victims of the only recently terminated war between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tigers.
Doing successful business in a "sustainable and responsible" way also attracts interest from the "trade establishment" in Sri Lanka. In September we received the National Export Chamber's Gold Export Award for 2009 in the Agriculture Value Added - Large Category. Not bad for a company only 4 years old.
 Dr. Bronner's fair trade projects also exemplify how global Fair Trade can foster direct trade and training relationships between small partner firms in developing countries not just with buyers in the West. Canaan Fair Trade, our Palestinian fair trade olive oil supplier, buys coconut oil for its soap production from Serendipol. Exchanges of agricultural field officers and of accounting staff between Serendipol and our palm oil sister project Serendipalm in Ghana shows the great potential for productive and enjoyable cultural exchange between people who would otherwise never meet even though they have much to share.
Hands-on participation by expert friends from Europe gave Serendipol its looks and heart. The site concept of the Cologne architecture firm Wansleben Architekten (http://www.wansleben-architekten.de/) combined functionality and esthetics, the design and implementation of the oil mill section came from Markus Groeber, an organic oil miller from France, and Dietrich Beitzke advised on energy technology (http://www.heizungsbetrieb.de/en/index.html). This made for great direct cooperation between global Northerners and Southerners while working up a sweat.
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