News items

Promoting trade in Zambian moringa

2019-04-12T14:29:25+00:00March 16th, 2018|Tags: , , |

Moringa is one of the new superfoods, the leaves of this plant  are packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Though a niche market in Europe, it has the potential to grow rapidly, if European buyers can position moringa as a healthy, natural and organic superfood. To do this, buyers need reliable suppliers of organic certified moringa.  This is one of the conclusions of our analysis of the European moringa market for the Dutch Enterprise Agency (RVO). With this study, we want to show Dutch buyers the potential of Zambian moringa. The study also aims to support investments in the Zambian moringa sector.  Between March [Read more]

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Closing the financial gap through matchmaking at BioFach

2019-04-12T14:31:56+00:00March 8th, 2018|Tags: , , , , |

Alterfin, Triodos and Rabo Rural Fund from Rabobank joined the financial matchmaking sessions that ProFound organises annually at BioFach. In total we made 13 matches for 9 exhibitors of our Organic Africa Pavilion.  With this service, we help to ensure that exhibitors gain access to financial solutions from social lenders and micro-financing organisations.  “The preparation of the matchmaking by ProFound was highly appreciated. We met interested and well-matched producers that we would hope to mature into opportunities for the future. The facilitation provided us with a great opportunity to meet with multiple companies that we otherwise may not have met. The meetings [Read more]

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Results of one year NI-CheckApp: alignment with control bodies, suppliers and buyers

2019-04-12T15:22:19+00:00March 8th, 2018|Tags: , , , , |

In 2017, ProFound launched the NI-CheckApp: a compliance tool for suppliers of wild-collected natural ingredients that would save time and money by harmonising multiple certification documentation. Now that we’re one year further, what have we achieved? Documentation set is complete In the past year, we transformed the concept of the NI-CheckApp into reality. The tool now boasts a complete and integrated documentation set including the operator profile for wild collection for Organic, FairWild, Fair standards and GACP. Control bodies buy into the use of NI-CheckApp Control bodies such as Control Union and IMO/Ecocert are welcoming the use of the NI-CheckApp. [Read more]

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Organic Africa Pavilion registers record number of 820 visitors at BioFach

2019-04-16T09:56:14+00:00February 21st, 2018|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

From 14-17 February, the twelve exhibitors of the Organic Africa Pavilion (OAP) met 820 potential business leads at BioFach, the highest ever since ProFound re-established the pavilion in 2016. This year, the pavilion exhibited the only suppliers from Madagascar, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Ghana at BioFach.          Africa is a major source for organic natural ingredients and products in everyday use, such as spices and cocoa. However, African suppliers at international trade fairs are few, as there is limited export promotion support in Africa. ProFound organised the Organic Africa Pavilion for the third time in a row as interest and satisfaction from [Read more]

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ProFound @BioFach: bringing African, Pakistani and Kosovar suppliers

2020-03-04T08:27:49+00:00February 9th, 2018|Tags: , , , , , , |

From 14-17 February, ProFound will manage the Organic Africa Pavilion at Biofach. We will also support two Pakistani suppliers at the CBI stand, introduce South African and Kosovar companies to interesting partners in Europe and join in the FairWild event on Thursday 15 February.Going to BioFach? Read on to see where to find us.Organic Africa Pavilion - stand 4-35911 suppliers from 5 African countries will exhibit their sweet and spicy products at the Organic Africa Pavilion hosted by ProFound at stand 4-359. Buyers and other visitors are welcome to smell and taste fresh papaya, wild pepper, tiger nuts, cocoa beans, baobab and [Read more]

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Introducing ProFound’s new Managing Director: Aafke van Sprundel

2020-03-02T17:20:53+00:00February 5th, 2018|

ProFound is happy to introduce our new Managing Director, Aafke van Sprundel. She has worked with and for private and public organisations to contribute towards a more sustainable and fair world. Over the past 1.5 years, Aafke worked with us designing our communication & marketing strategies. Working with Aafke made us realise that she has the right drive and passion to lead ProFound into new levels of engagement. And this allows me to do what I love most: working with the ProFound team on our innovative tools and programmes. - Bert-Jan Ottens (Senior Adviser, Owner of ProFound) "I am very proud [Read more]

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‘Sweet and Spicy’ Organic Africa Pavilion 2018 hosts 11 entrepreneurs at BioFach: stand 4-359

2020-03-04T11:40:15+00:00January 11th, 2018|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

11 suppliers from 5 African countries will exhibit their sweet and spicy products at the Organic Africa Pavilion 2018 hosted by ProFound at BioFach 2018, stand 4-359. The fair will take place 14 – 17 February 2018 in Nurnberg Germany. Buyers and other visitors are welcome to smell and taste fresh papaya wild pepper fresh ginger tiger nuts cocoa beans and chocolate moringa baobab pineapple and lychee juice vanilla green and yellow beans ProFound organises the Organic Africa Pavilion for the third time in a row as interest and satisfaction from both suppliers and market keeps growing for natural ingredients [Read more]

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Sustainable collection standards for Pakistani pine nuts cheaper and easier with NI-CheckApp

2020-03-04T11:50:40+00:00December 22nd, 2017|Tags: , , , , , |

Hunza Organics, based in Northern Pakistan, has just passed its first inspection for FairWild certification, of wild-collected, organic pine nuts. We expect the certification decision to be made in January, which would make Hunza Organics the first company with multiple certified products in the pilot that CBI and ProFound designed for Northern Pakistan. We are proud that Hunza Organics used our total compliance tool, NI-CheckApp, to make the implementation of sustainable collection standards cheaper and easier. Our IN2NI colleague Michael Schwegler provided technical support throughout this process. In their final step towards the European market, Hunza Organics will exhibit their products at the BioFach trade [Read more]

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Trading prospects for Biotrade suppliers after match-making with international buyers

2019-04-16T10:48:42+00:00December 20th, 2017|Tags: , , , , , |

Susan Curtis was one of three buyers on the buyer’s mission for the SECO-funded Regional BioTrade Project Southeast Asia with Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation facilitated by ProFound. As Director of Natural Health at Neal’s Yard Remedies, Susan visited Myanmar and Vietnam and explored the possibilities to cooperate with suppliers of BioTrade ingredients. The mission inspired her to consider some of these ingredients for the products of Neal’s Yard Remedies, including both high quality spice essential oils and a cosmetic ingredient that would be new to Europe and has the potential to lead to some exciting and innovative new product development. “I was [Read more]

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CBI assigns ProFound to conduct Value Chain Analysis in Central America

2019-03-28T11:44:46+00:00December 20th, 2017|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

ProFound is starting 2018 at full speed. We have been recently selected by CBI to carry out a Value Chain Analysis for its new Export Coaching Programme (ECP) in Central America. This ECP will be implemented in the framework of the European Commission’s Central America Regional Economic Integration policy. In the first weeks of next year we will investigate the constraints and opportunities for Central American countries within the following export-potential sectors: Specialty coffee Cocoa and derivatives Fresh fruit and vegetables Processed fruit and vegetables Fish and seafood ProFound will shed special light on Corporate Social Responsibility issues and risks, [Read more]

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