About Us
The global system of supply and demand for food, health and cosmetic products is coming under increasing pressure from the impacts of climate change, population increase with a growing demand from limited resources, and changing diets and trends. Consumers are more and more aware of these changing circumstances and hence seek reassurance from companies that they are managing their supply chains in a transparent and sustainable way.
Our goal is to disrupt and transform local, regional and international food and ingredient supply chains into transparent, equitable and sustainable market systems. Aim is to not only add value for the actors involved, but also for consumers in knowing the origins and health aspects of the products they buy. To have more impact in terms of producer development, ecological impacts and system transformation, we engage in partnerships to implement our transformative market solutions.
The ProFound team consists of experts and advisers in development. We regularly collaborate with freelance consultants and trainees when and where required. Much of the work is done through teamwork, which optimises creative inputs and ensures the continuity of the tasks at hand.
Market Systems Change
At ProFound we are in a mission to develop Farm-to-Fork traceability and compliance tools. We train SMEs and aggregators to work in accordance with national and international standards, and connects them with local and international buyers. Through a design-lab approach we help design and implement sustainable and traceable sourcing practices of agro-biodiverse and natural ingredients. This involves innovative product-market matches with value addition for producers, regenerative practices and lowering Carbon footprint, as well as tailored marketing strategies with a true story to tell.
In 2021 Solidaridad, 1-2-Taste and ProFound joined hands to demonstrate transparency in the 1-2-Taste B2B platform for natural ingredients, informing companies and consumers about the origins and sustainability of the ingredients traded.
The 1-2-Taste platform is B2B Food Innovation Platform that connects suppliers with buyers. At ProFound we believe that working closely with this platform we can connect our entrepreneurs with international markets. By highlighting traceability and sustainable sourcing through the platform we aimto assist SMEs to increase market share, and expand into new market segments. This can include new applications for food or health market segments. We support SMEs to adjust to the different market access requirements, and make a match with potential buyers, including the development of marketing storylines to stand out from the competition.
Why Agro-biodiverse products and natural ingredients?
We work mainly with suppliers of agro-biodiverse products and natural ingredients in emerging markets. We have a particular interest in non-commodity ingredients and those originating from wild collection. We believe such ingredients offer opportunities for rural income generation and supporting biodiversity. Specifically as well in areas where climatic and soil conditions allow for few other income opportunities. Here, interesting ingredients can still be produced, both under cultivation and collected from the wild. This enables farmers and collectors to earn much needed income and entrepreneurs to find business opportunities. At the same time, sustainable collection or cultivation in biodiverse production systems can improve soils and sustain biodiversity. Our 30+ years of experience in natural ingredients makes this the sector where ProFound can contribute most to sustainable economic development.
ProFound supports suppliers to add value to the natural ingredients they supply to the food, health and cosmetics industries. We foster value addition throughout the supply chain of the ingredient. Such as sorting and grading, mixing, processing, labelling and packaging according to buyer specifications. We also help entrepreneurs. We guide them on how to add value by documenting and certifying their processes. Or by sharing interesting stories that buyers can use in their marketing. The more value addition done in the country of origin, the higher the margin. And eventually, the higher the profit for the producers that ProFound supports. ProFound currently works on biodiversity in East Africa, South-East Asia,Pakistan, and South Africa.
Sustainability is at the heart of what we do
With our mission and activities we directly contribute to the UN sustainable development goals 1, 2, 8, 12, 13 and 15.
Our solutions:
Analysis
We do and count with up-to-date research on a large variety of agricultural products and natural ingredients, and on developments in sub-sectors. We translate our findings into concrete actions and recommendations, to pave the way for successful market entry and/or sector development.
Compliance
Suppliers need to meet requirements of those markets and potential business partners. Buyers expect safe, traceable, sustainable and well-documented products. To meet these expectations, ProFound assists companies in developing solutions and implementing actions to become compliant with market requirements.
Market Entry
We support businesses and support organisations in developing market entry strategies, and in building capacity to implement these strategies. Through our matchmaking and trade fair promotion services, we help companies find their best match in local, regional or international markets.
Digital
We can deliver the majority of our solutions digitally. Over the last years we have been working to develop digital tools to support all our market analysis, compliance and market entry solutions.
AGBA
The Asian Green Business Accelerator (AGBA) supports asian entrepreneurs that want to become export-ready or start exporting to internacional markets. We aim to transform SME´s into international market exporters.
Some of our clients:
