Growing Knowledge & Building Partnerships

In May 2017, University of Hawaii-Manoa (UH) professor, Dr. Ethel Villalobos and UH graduate student, Scott Nikaido, traveled to the regions of Valverde and Monte Cristi in the northeast of the Dominican Republic, where they surveyed eight apiaries and made recommendations on beekeeping management. The objective of this F2F team assignment was to provide hands-on training to banana producers of the Banelino Association on the development and implementation of apiculture projects for honey production. As part of this assignment, Dr. Villalobos and Mr. Nikaido worked alongside Banelino staff and led workshops focused on production techniques and technologies for honey bees and queen rearing. The volunteers also assisted Banelino by identifying the best set of endemic flowers for beekeeping and ways that local farmers could improve their apiculture management practices in order to optimize honey production. Dr. Villalobos during her visit to Partners HQ in October 2017 Thro

The Federacion Comercializadora de Café Especial de Guatemala (FECCEG) is an association of small organic coffee producers established in 2006. FECCEG currently works with 10 cooperatives in Chimaltenango, Huehuetenango, Quiché, Sololá, San Marcos, and Quetzaltenango, and over 1,000 farmers, of which more than 350 are women. Their mission is to promote and support the sustainability of small-scale producers by providing training in the production of organic coffee, honey, and sugar cane, in addition to value-chain support services. FECCEG seeks to increase the incomes of member producers, while also promoting environmental sustainability and gender equality. In 2013, Kishé Foods, LLC (Kishé) was founded in California as a subsidiary of FECCEG in order to help the association have a more established presence in the U.S. market. In addition, as a social enterprise, Kishé Foods serves to strengthen the coffee value chain by directly selling Guatemalan coffee to US consumers.   

Clare Licher, owner of the Arizona-based family-run business PhiBee Aromatics, not only possesses thirty years of experience in aromatherapy and essential oils, but is also a frequent Farmer-to-Farmer volunteer. In the past, Clare traveled to Jamaica in both 2016 and 2017 to consult with the Yerba Buena Farm regarding the establishment of a commercial essential oils distillery and market growth potential. Most recently, she traveled to Haiti to again utilize her highly-specialized knowledge of essential oils to assist the non-profit, Prosperity Catalyst, and their Haitian affiliate Fanm Limye. [Left] Clare during a workshop in Jamaica in 2016. [Right] Clare during her assignment in 2017. Fanm Limye has operated in Haiti since 2012, working directly with over 400 beekeepers in Western Haiti. Most recently, the organization has assisted beekeepers in cultivating essential oil-yielding plants to provide nectar for their bees and scent candles made from their beeswax. Clare helpe