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QUARTERLY RETURN 94 Winter 2014/15

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AGM news

ACCESS TO FINANCE

TO SERRV THE CAUSE OF A BETTER WORLD

Update on our 25th anniversary AGM.

Helping fair trade businesses grow across Africa.

Financing artisans and farmers across the world.

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page 6 & 7

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05/01/2015 10:26:46

Welcome Happy New Year to you all and I hope you had a great Christmas.

We were delighted to receive such a positive response to our Christmas card, and thank you to everyone who invested further with us over the festive period.

We are now looking forward to our AGM in the spring. It is our 25th anniversary, so it seems very apt that we hold this landmark event in our home region. We hope as many of you as possible are able to join us at Sage, Gateshead on Friday 20th March. This prestigious building on the banks of the River Tyne is home to music and artists from across the globe. You can read more below about what we have in store on the day.

One of our customers, Fairtrade nut producer, Candela, celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

Paul Sablich from our Peru office tells of his trip to their premises before Christmas. Guatemalan honey producer CIPAC visited our offices in Newcastle and you can read more about this on page 11.

of your investment. ACOPAGRO is the focus of one of our films and you can read more about them on the opposite page. Cocoa is also one of the topics of this year’s Fairtrade Fortnight, highlighting that just 1.2% of cocoa is currently traded on fair terms.

We have more news on the Access to Finance project run by our charity, Shared Interest Foundation. Over 30 businesses benefitting from the Foundation’s bespoke training and mentoring have since applied for finance from us. You can read about Kabuboni and GOIG on pages six and seven; two organisations to receive some of the £2m awarded in lending facilities since the beginning of the Access to Finance programme.

It is great to hear from our investors about their motivations around getting involved and there is a fantastic story from Geoff and Jan Casey on page five about a special visit they made to a café at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro. Please do get in touch if you have tales of inspiration about your reasons for investing in Shared Interest. As always, we would love to hear from you.

Thank you once again for your continued support in 2014,

Members attending our AGM will also be the first people to see this year’s films showing the impact

Patricia Alexander, Managing Director

AGM UPDATE In our last edition of QR we announced the date and venue for next year’s AGM. 2015 will see Shared Interest Society celebrate our 25th anniversary, and what better way to celebrate this momentous occasion than with our members at the prestigious Sage, Gateshead; an international music centre on the banks of the Tyne.

We will be inviting all members to join us in our home region on Friday 20th March. Fairtrade International’s Harriett Lamb is our keynote speaker, and Chino will be joining us from Apicoop, a honey and blueberry co-operative in Chile who featured in our autumn edition of QR. In addition to this, the event will also see our five anniversary flags being joined together. Read more about the journey of the flags on page four.

Front cover image: Coffee and dairy farmer from Kabuboni in Kenya

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05/01/2015 10:26:51

FILMING THE IMPACT of

YOUR INVESTMENT

This year we commissioned a film in Peru about Fairtrade cocoa production. An in-country film crew spent a couple of days with one of our customers, ACOPAGRO, to discover the story behind this cocoa co-operative based in the San Martín region of Peru.

Today, ACOPAGRO has over 2,000 members in four different provinces of the San Martín region.

The co-operative is now recognised for the work it does in developing the local community by becoming a business model for the Alternative Development Programme in Peru. Their high quality cocoa is now sold through speciality markets.

General Manager, Gonzalo Rios Nuñez said:

ACOPAGRO has been a customer of Shared Interest for almost five years and currently uses a lending facility to pre-finance orders.

The organisation was created when a group of individual farmers came together to increase their chance of selling in international markets, with the main aim of improving their quality of life.

“Our job is directly with the farmers, building their trust in us. The work with them involves a lot of responsibility but at the same time it provides great satisfaction. Previously the situation was very difficult. When we accessed the credit provided by Shared Interest we were able to buy cocoa beans and as a consequence to help our farmers.”

We are looking forward to unveiling the ACOPAGRO film at our AGM on 20th March. This will be accompanied by a special anniversary film to commemorate our highlights over the past 25 years.

Fairtrade Fortnight 2015 Cocoa is also the theme for Fairtrade Fortnight 2015.

The Fairtrade Foundation has announced the focus for Fairtrade Fortnight 2015 will be on the producers who grow our favourite Fairtrade products. Shared Interest will join the Foundation in asking you to turn a spotlight on producers. By sharing their stories we can remind the UK of the dramatic difference choosing Fairtrade makes. The focus will be on a few core commodities – cocoa, sugar, and tea.

Whether you’re an individual or part of a Fairtrade group, the Fairtrade Foundation is asking you to take action. For more information visit the Fairtrade Foundation’s website at www.fairtrade.org.uk/fortnight

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05/01/2015 10:26:52

25 years of

ethical investment OUR CAMPAIGN TO INCREASE MEMBERSHIP AND INVESTMENT IS GOING well Our goal is to increase membership to 10,000 investors, and to increase share capital to £33 million by the end of 2015.

In order to achieve our goals we need a further £1.4 million in investment and approximately 400 new members.

To give you an idea of what this means • If every existing member invested another £150 we would reach our goal of £33 million • If one in 20 members encouraged a friend to invest we would reach our goal of 10,000 members.

HOW YOU CAN HELP: • Speak to a friend about Shared Interest and our campaign • Explain that with as little as £100 they too can open an ethical investment account • Visit our ‘Your Share Account – Your Options’ page on our website and review your own payment arrangements • Ask us to come and talk to your church, voluntary, or fair trade group, or to submit something for a newsletter

FLYING THE FLAG Our Regional Development Executives in Ghana, Kenya, Costa Rica and Peru have been busy travelling with our anniversary flags, asking customers and partners to pen their messages of support for Shared Interest.

Our five flags have now travelled to over 40 destinations across the globe and have many more trips to go planned before they are joined together. When united, the flags will represent the people and partners we work with worldwide.

You can follow the progress of the flags on our website and also via Twitter @SharedInterest #followourflags #25years #25yearsofethicalinvestment

SAVE THE DATE: 25th Anniversary AGM 2015, Friday 20TH March at Sage, Gateshead 04 QR94 QR-94.indd 4

05/01/2015 10:26:55

A Union between Farmer and

Fair Trade Investor

You may remember reading about Kilimanjaro Native Co-operative Union (KNCU) in your Spring QR. Standing at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro in Moshi Town, Union Café is owned by KNCU, the oldest coffee union in Tanzania.

Shared Interest members, Geoff and Jan Casey, where intrigued by the article, especially since they planned to stay in Moshi Town during their walking holiday in Tanzania. Geoff says: “We hoped that we would be able to find Union Café but we were not optimistic we would actually be able to visit. We were pleased when the tour leader showed an interest in the café.

“As well as sampling the excellent coffee, the group was able to see the coffee roaster in action and talk to members of staff. They found it difficult to believe that their place of work featured in a magazine distributed in the UK – but they were pleased that it had!”

Geoff and Jan Casey have been investors with us since 2001. Geoff explains: “On occasions, you wonder if your investment is having the impact you hope for. It was very reassuring to find concrete evidence in Moshi that our investment, however small, is really making a positive difference to people’s lives.”

Council member - claire wigg Council member, Claire Wigg is stepping down this year after her six year term. Here she tells us in her own words about her motivations for getting involved: “In 1995 I placed a small amount of spare cash in Shared Interest. Twenty years on I’m retiring from the Shared Interest Council. The story of my involvement with the organisation can perhaps inspire others to invest or to get engaged in other ways.

In the mid-1990s, fair trade was gaining ground and I was donating a little money here and there.

However, Shared Interest offered something more attractive: rather than my money being spent, it would be lent. I liked the idea that it would be lent time and time again, to help others to trade themselves out of poverty. To me, this was a perfect place for my spare cash.

Over the years I added to my Share Account as and when I could. Then, out of the blue, I was offered the chance to join the Council as a randomly selected member. I feel very fortunate to have been able to

participate. My time on Council has been a real learning experience. I’ve learnt about fair trade, fair finance, the inner workings of Shared Interest and much more. It’s been very rewarding to be part of such an engaged group of people – the Council, the staff and the Board – all wanting the best for the organisation and those it supports.

I am glad that I am able to keep some spare cash with Shared Interest and contribute to making the world a fairer place. They say that money makes the world go round, and if we’re going to improve life for others we need to put our money in the right places.

Shared Interest is definitely the right place for me.”

Council is always pleased to receive ideas about how to attract new investors. Please email sicouncil@shared-interest.com with your suggestions.

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05/01/2015 10:26:58

MILKING OPPORTUNITIES FOR A BETTER FUTURE

Kabuboni Farmers Co-operative Society Ltd is a fairtrade certified coffee producer on the slopes of Mount Kenya. The location relies on coffee as the main cash crop. Kabuboni has embarked on a campaign to revitalise coffee farming in the area after farmers had neglected the product.

Shared Interest Foundation Project Leader, Jo Hall said: “The training programme has been crucial in assisting organisations like Kabuboni to improve the way they present their finances, as well as introducing the concept of social lending as an affordable alternative for financial support.”

Kabuboni is the first customer to receive a lending facility in their local currency. Many of the coffee farmers already kept dairy cows, but didn’t have the facilities to store their milk. By providing the cooling plant and encouraging their workers to earn an additional income, Kabuboni is helping their workers to become less vulnerable to coffee price fluctuations and provide better support for their families.

After receiving specialist training and mentoring from Shared Interest Foundation’s Access to Finance project, Kabuboni members have been able to find an extra source of income from dairy farming. A lending facility from Shared Interest Society has financed a cooling plant, which is used to store the milk at the correct temperature after it leaves Kabuboni’s collection centres.

Philip Murithi Agostino said: “We were in dire need of funds for diversification. The training has helped us access this finance and subsequently increase the number of female employees as the majority of dairy farmers tend to be women.”

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05/01/2015 10:27:07

Getting Old

Is to Grow

Getting Old Is to Grow (GOIG) is a handcraft organisation with 50 employees in Dar es Salaam.

GOIG was founded in 1991 by a group of 12 retired women, whose mission was to help older people in the community, and their vision was to pass down their skills to the next generation.

However, 20 years ago, GOIG founded a vocational centre to train young people as well, especially girls, on handcraft making skills such as design, tailoring, textiles, jewellery, and candle-making.

The organisation is led by Misana Manyama.

As Executive Director, he manages the centre and training unit in weaving, tailoring and jewellery-making. Misana put GOIG forward as a candidate for Shared Interest Foundation’s Access to Finance project.

Their subsequent training and mentoring has enabled GOIG to apply for a loan from Shared Interest Society, and a facility has been approved.

Executive Director Misana Manyama said: “The Access to Finance mentoring made a big difference. It has assisted us to know how to manage our finances, how to keep our records and has made it easy for the auditors to audit us.”

GOIG will use the loan to buy six new sewing machines specifically for working with heavy duty leather and canvas materials.

Each machine will result in four new jobs as well as a brand new cashier position. They will also re-employ 18 weavers who had been made redundant.

In 2013 GOIG established a nursery and primary school on the land that they own alongside their premises.

The school has 50 children enrolled from the local community, and this includes five pupils from disadvantaged families who attend free of charge.

GOIG has recently researched the handcraft market in East Africa and have since designed a new range of products, including children’s bags.

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05/01/2015 10:27:25

TO SERRV THE CAUSE

OF A BETTER WORLD

SERRV International Inc. is a non-profit organisation based in the USA. A fair trade buyer working with sole traders and co-operatives, the organisation connects farmers and artisans in Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, and United States with consumers all over the world.

Their story began in World War Two when a group of relief workers helped refugees to create unique products in order to get them back on their feet. The name Sales Exchange for Refugee Rehabilitation became SERRV. However, as Managing Director Bob Chase explains:

“We consider Shared Interest an essential partner in all of our work as they share our values and our commitment to creating a just world.”

Bob continued: “Our sales have more than doubled in the time we have been working with Shared Interest, allowing us to significantly increase our fair trade purchases.

“Today the name has come to reflect the qualities of the organisation as those people involved are dedicated to serve the cause of a better world through fair trade.”

SERRV has been a customer of Shared Interest for over 17 years and, as Bob says, this relationship has helped the organisation in many ways: “This finance has made it possible for us to become independent and to grow, impacting many more low income artisans and farmers.

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“The continuing support made available by Shared Interest has allowed us to strengthen our infrastructure, open new stores, increase catalogue distribution and take on new artisan and farmer partners.”

SERRV believes everyone should have the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty and support their families through fair payments and respectful relationships. The organisation promises:

“Every basket, every tablecloth, every necklace we offer has a face behind it.”

“An artisan who works in a safe environment, can send her children to school, and can save for the future with the reliable income she earns through fair trade. Some of these partnerships have lasted for over 25 years!”

Prepayments are always offered for orders, reasonable production timelines are agreed upon, and SERRV also provides grants so artisans can expand their own businesses. As the organisation reaches its 65th anniversary, we asked Bob about the future plans.

“We hope to increase our catalogue and online sales as these are ways of selling directly to consumers. This means we get to tell the story of the person behind the product. We hope to work with more producers in Africa.

We believe fair trade is about education, training and opportunity as well as selling products.”

“Shared Interest has been absolutely key to the growth of fair trade around the globe. It provides the finance needed by fair traders to do business and grow.”

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05/01/2015 10:27:36

Celebrating 25 years of nut gathering

During the official anniversary ceremony of the ‘first stone’, unexpectedly Gastón asked me to do the formal proceedings by cutting a red ribbon that tied up the stone and was hanging from a wooden tripod. It was a great honour as these activities are usually made by the main person running the event.

Gastón said: “That would not have been possible without the support of Shared Interest and sent his greetings to all.”

Following the ceremony we visited a garden area where Candela are trying to promote the plant biodiversity of the Jungle.

In October, Regional Development Executive Paul Sablich visited long-standing customer Candela in Peru, to join them in celebrating their 25th anniversary.

Paul tells us about his trip in his own words: I recently visited Candela Perú in its premises in Puerto Maldonado town, South Eastern Jungle of Peru. Candela has been a customer of Shared Interest for around 15 years. Their business is focused on brazil nuts, brazil nut oil and dried fruits. They are celebrating their 25th anniversary this year.

Puerto Maldonado received us with 36oC (although the actual sensation was easily 40oC). At least 200 nut gatherers participated in the celebrations plus staff from the Lima premises and Board members. A football champion started the activities of the day, I have deep respect for the players as they played under the most intense sun and heat. Later, Gastón Vizcarra (President) and Lupe Lanao (Manager) took us on a tour of the processing areas. They have already installed a new cauldron as well as an electric dryer, which will increase their production capacity.

They are currently installing a new transportation system to reduce time and processing costs. Their brand new peeling machine has recently been assembled in Lima City and will later be delivered to Puerto Maldonado. Beside this they have already built the ground base of the new building for the peeling area.

“You can notice the sparkle of Gastón and Lupe’s eyes when they were telling the visitors about their progress and plans.”

Candela has been able to carry out these investments thanks to a recent term loan from Shared Interest.

Shared Interest has also supported Candela in the past with finance for improving their production infrastructure and equipment.

“They have covered the garden roads with Brazil nut shells and every step produced a cracking sound - surrounded by the pleasant smell of these nuts it is fantastic.”

Later, we enjoyed a lunch altogether. It was noticeable the family environment of the event and how close Gastón and Lupe are with the staff and nut gatherers.

The weather was especially unpredictable - after the intense heat of the morning, in a matter of minutes the sky was covered with clouds. For a moment it was refreshing, although it started a very heavy wind that blew up the dried soil and we ate dust for a while. Needless to say, the clouds went dark and the Jungle rain began. All in one day!

“I can tell you that I felt very proud that Candela is one of our customers and that Shared Interest has been a strategic partner in the evolution and growth of the organisation, having a direct positive impact on the nut gatherers.”

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05/01/2015 10:27:36

IT’S ALL ABOUT

THE BEES

Situated in the remote North West mountainous region of Guatemala, lies CIPAC (Cooperativa Integral de Producción Apicultores de Cuilco) - a small honey producer which has recently diversified into Fairtrade coffee production.

Carlos Garcia from CIPAC visited Shared Interest with Zenen Santana-Delgado from Traidcraft. As you can see from the photographs, staff enjoyed sampling their honey and coffee, along with Traidcraft products containing these ingredients. We also took the opportunity to ask Carlos how Shared Interest has helped improve business for CIPAC, and the livelihoods of people involved.

Q: When and how did you first hear of Shared Interest Society?

We were introduced to Shared Interest in 2010 through the Guatemala Fair Trade Platform. We were also already working with Traidcraft who recommended Shared Interest finance to us.

Q: Does your lending facility suit your needs?

When we were getting funds from buyers it was only coming in for the harvest, now we have funds all year.

The support from Shared Interest is really important to our business.

“THE BEES PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE ENVIRONMENT, BENEFITTING THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY NOT JUST THE MEMBERS.” Q: What challenges does your community face?

In the community the main challenge is the access to education and health, in the co-operative their challenge is to improve their production, technology and product diversification. They also need to be able to provide enough support to their members to improve housing.

Another challenge is in relation to product diversification - CIPAC has managed to diversify into coffee. Now we would like to obtain organic coffee certification in order to reach different markets and buyers.

Q: Has Shared Interest finance had a positive effect for your community?

Members are receiving more benefits now and families are employing more people to harvest the coffee.

Through their work they have been able to provide food security in the community.

“THERE IS A LOT OF MIGRATION IN GUATEMALA BUT THE MEMBERS OF CIPAC ARE NOT MIGRATING – THEY HAVE A PATH THAT ALLOWS THEM TO GROW AND START A PROPER LIFE NOW.” Access to healthcare has improved. Previously people had to travel over three hours for healthcare. There is now a healthcare centre close by, which some members have helped fund. The community’s consumption of honey is important for the organisation; 10% of the honey is sold locally providing better health in the community.

Q: Do you have a message for Shared Interest investors?

On behalf of CIPAC, their members and the community, I would like to thank the investors for their efforts to give funds to Shared Interest to support us to improve economically and socially. CIPAC provides social support with not for profit aims; rest assured that your funds are resulting in the improvement of livelihoods and the community.

If you would like to buy CIPAC Fairtrade honey, it is available at www.traidcraft.co.uk and is also used as an ingredient in Traidcraft’s Geobars.

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05/01/2015 10:27:40

Letter to

the editor

I recently moved house and needed to change my address on my Share Account. When I tried to do this over the telephone, I was infor med I needed to write into Shared Interest. Why was this?

Yours Sincerely,

Shared Interest 2 Cathedral Square Groat Market Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1EH

A Member

Dear member, The security of funds invested in Shared Interest is a priority for us and we need to ensure that we protect memb ers’ investments. For this reason, we need any changes of this nature on your account to be verified with a signature.

This is why we ask that members write in to us with a chang e of address. With some changes, we will need supporting evidence.

For example, with regards to changing your name on the account due to marriage, we will need you to send in your marriage certificate and also include a signed coveri ng letter.

Over time, we do appreciate that people’s signatures may change slightly. If you write in to us requesting a chang e of information or a withdrawal and we are not able to match the signature with the one we hold on our system, then we will contact you for another form of identification.

We apologise if this causes any inconvenience but protec tion of your personal details and funds is a paramount conce rn and these extra steps are sometimes necessary.

In 2015, we will be introducing a new web portal, where members will be able to login and change address details online.

We will update you further on this in the next issue of QR. If you have any questions about this, please conta ct membership@shared-interest.com or 0191 233 9102 Thank you, Shared Interest

Contact us

Quarterly Return is the newsletter of Shared Interest Society.

Shared Interest Society

Shared Interest Society Ltd is a fair trade lending organisation which is a member of Co-operatives UK. It uses the pooled investments of its members in the UK to effect real and lasting improvements to people’s lives in the developing world.

2 Cathedral Square Groat Market Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1EH 0191 233 9102

@SharedInterest membership@shared-interest.com www.shared-interest.com

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Shared Interest Society Ltd is registered with the Registrar of Mutual Societies, number 27093R. The Directors decide on what the interest rate payable to members will be.

From 1 October 2011 the interest rate has been 0.5%.

QR is printed on paper from sustainable, well managed sources certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

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