Growing Knowledge & Building Partnerships

Two Worlds Come Together to Build New Solutions against Malnutrition What does a USAID-funded Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) expert volunteer group from the island of Puerto Rico have to do with combatting food insecurity in Guatemala? Everything.  F2F volunteer Gabriela Colón Rios trains Mam Indigenous women to better care for their goats which will improve food security and reduce high malnourishment rates. Chiantla, Guatemala. Photo Credit: Monica Gonzalez In March 2023, a group of five eager F2F volunteers arrived in Huehuetenango (Huehue), Guatemala, with hearts and minds set on combatting food insecurity in a part of the world unknown to them.  Over the next 10 days, this team of experts would consider Huehue, in Guatemala’s Western Highland region, their new home and office. Accompanying them on their mission would be faithful companions and mighty conduits of change: goats.  Communities in this region live at altitudes reaching 10,000 feet above sea level nestled by capti...

Q&A Conversations over Tea : Blending Cultures, Expertise , and Tea Formulas   In March 2023, Partners of the Americas' Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) program partnered with ARSO Corporation (ARSO) based in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala to brew up innovative ideas and flavorful concoctions related to tea and infusion products.  ARSO co-owners and brothers, (L to R) Hildán and Andrés Argueta, evaluate tea blend formulas. Quetzaltenango. Guatemala. Photo Credit: Monica Gonzalez Since the 1930’s, ARSO has operated as a family-run agribusiness that has farmed products such as coffee, rubber, African palm, and other products. By 1997, ARSO, under the leadership of brothers Hildán and Andrés Argueta, diversified into producing exotic fruits, such as rambutan and mangosteen to supply local and international markets.  To this end, the ARSO team was very excited about the arrivals of Dr. Rachel Meyer and Dr. Ashley DuVal, a first-time F2F volunteer team with vast experience in tea blen...

By Dr. Homero Salinas, F2F Volunteer in October 2022 About the Assignment: Dr. Homero Salinas supported the Cabras Para La Prosperidad project (CABPRO) as a Goat Genetics Expert. Dr. Salinas provided CABPRO participants and technicians knowledge on recent goat crossbreeding advances to improve goat milk production. Dr. Salinas received his Doctorate in Animal Science from the Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon. He is now at Lincoln University, where he conducts research on Small Ruminant Education. The Cabras Para La Prosperidad project is a collaboration between Partners of the Americas Farmers to Farmers (USAID) and Fundacion Mario Lopez Estrada (FMLE) in the remote mountain area of Guatemala. The project goal is to sponsor at least 350 households characterized by pregnant women or mothers with children under five years old. The program supports one local (crossbreed) goat and three laying hens per family. This production of milk, meat, and eggs then will  be...

By Dr. Dannica Wall, F2F Volunteer in April 2023 About the Assignment: Dr. Dannica Wall supported Punchline Farm as a Duck Hatchery Management Specialist. Dr. Wall provided hands-on training in all areas related to hatchery operations and management. Dr. Wall holds a PhD in Animal and Poultry Science from North Carolina State University. Oftentimes we relish in the excitement of our passion, so when the opportunity comes to share that passion with others especially at an international level, one must take it. Recently, I had the pleasure of traveling to Georgetown, Guyana to share my expertise with the farmers of Punchline Farms on duck management and troubleshoot some of their issues and concerns. Now when I was initially asked to join this project I was super excited and didn’t think twice about accepting the assignment. Shortly after, it hit me, my Spanish is literally at middle school level and I know nothing about Guyana. Thanks to my trusted friend Google and my ability to do...

By Allison Greene, F2F Volunteer in April 2023 About the Assignment:  Allison Greene supported the Asociacion de Productores de Olopa (APOLO) as a Business Development Expert. Ms. Greene trained APOLO staff on how to forecast sales, maintain inventory, conduct basic accounting, and aspects of operating a small business. Ms. Greene has professional experience in private sector consulting, business development, implementation of food product innovations, and project management. I traveled as a Small Business Operations expert to support APOLO, a coffee association and café, in Olopa, Chiquimula, Guatemala. My assignment was to provide training on basic accounting practices, inventory control, sales forecasting, and reviewing various profit scenarios for the newly opened café. Over the course of my two weeks with the APOLO team, I had the opportunity to witness them in action in the office and the café, which better informed my training materials and helped me create unique systems ju...

By Andrew Blunk, F2F Volunteer in March 2022 This blog was taken with permission from his blog on YOOMBEEKINBARACHUUGUBACHUU . It has been edited for length. About the Assignment:   Andrew Blunk supported CV Farms as a Hydroponics Expert. Mr. Blunk assessed the operations of CV Farms, focusing on yield and shelf life of their crops. Mr. Blunk is a Plant Science Consultant for Grateful Greens Microgreens in Vermont. A little history about hydroponics in Guyana. In 2005 there was a bad flood in Guyana that caused crop failures across the country and 40% of the country to lose personal possessions and property 2005 Georgetown flood – Wikipedia . Consequently, the agricultural sector looked to options that could withstand extreme rainfall events. This is pretty common everywhere in the world currently- farmers are very aware/experiencing that climate change is affecting weather, especially rain, and are looking at how to grow food when the rainy season is less predictable. Less predict...