Borrower Overview
TriLinc has provided financing to a Peruvian company engaged in the purchase, processing, packaging, export and sale of fruits and vegetables. The borrower anticipates that the financing will allow it to expand its salad and fresh cuts business, thereby supporting the growth of small-scale farmers from the highlands of Lima. In business since 1997, the company’s customers include large food brands and U.S.-based restaurant chains including Dole Food Company, McDonalds, Subway, Starbucks Coffee Company, and Pizza Hut. The loan is secured by collateral held in two independent trusts and also includes the personal guaranty of the principal shareholder. Most of the company’s employees are located in Peru’s main port of Callao. Its CEO has worked extensively with smallholder fruit and vegetable producers in Peru to improve product quality and promote business sustainability. For example, the company provides technical assistance to the producers, including advice for optimizing productivity, and training on efficiency and quality control. The borrower’s HACCP and GMP system certifications for their processing business were completed by SGS, a leading international inspection, verification, testing and certification firm. These certifications help demonstrate the company’s food safety management and product quality assurance systems are of the highest caliber.
Market Overview
Peru is the seventh largest economy in Latin America and is classified as a middle income country by the World Bank.1 Real GDP growth over the last 5 years (2008-2012) has averaged more than 6.5%.1 Since 2002 (2002-2012), real GDP growth has averaged nearly 6.4%.2 Major export sectors include copper, gold, zinc, textiles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, machinery and fish meal.
Peru meets TriLinc’s country standards for its performance across relevant growth, stability and access metrics.3 It has been one of the fastest growing economies in the world in recent years, with a steadily improving macroeconomic environment including foreign reserves.4 In 2013, it ranked second out of 32 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business index.5
Additional Sustainability & Impact Highlights
- Most of the company’s vegetable and fruit produce are purchased from Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) suppliers throughout Peru.
- The company’s partnerships with leading international food companies require it to prioritize and maintain international food safety standards.
- In addition to offering technical assistance to small producers, the company contracts with a local utility company to advise and assist roughly 150 smallholder farmers located south of Lima with energy efficiency and power-related issues.
- Through its strategic alliance with an international food brand, the company has leased an ultra-high pressure processing (UHPP) machine for its avocado processing business, which reduces energy usage while upholding the sensory and nutritional quality of its products.
1IMF, World Economic Outlook Database, April 2013. 2IMF 2013. 3There is no assurance that our investment in this company or this market will be successful. 4World Bank, World Development Indicators Database, 2013. 5World Bank, Doing Business 2014, October 2013.
The above information is as of the initial date of investment: March 25, 2014.
This borrower is no longer a TriLinc fund investment.
TriLinc originally performed an SDG mapping exercise in December 2017 to map all of our borrower companies, both current and exited from our portfolios, to specific SDGs based off of business activity. TriLinc’s official SDG alignment methodology was not finalized until June 30, 2018. For borrowers that had exited TriLinc’s portfolios prior to this time period, the selected SDGs for these borrower are a reflection of what TriLinc believes would have been the SDG alignment if 1) the SDGs had been in effect and 2) TriLinc had integrated the SDG alignment while the company was in the portfolio. The SDG mapping presented does not include input from Investment Partners or borrower companies given that the companies were no longer in the portfolio when the alignment was finalized.
An investment with TriLinc carries significant fees and charges that will have an impact on investment returns. Information regarding the terms of the investment is available by contacting TriLinc. This is a speculative security and, as such, involves a high degree of risk. Investments are not bank guaranteed, not FDIC insured and may lose value or total value. Some investments may have been made in an investment vehicle that is no longer open for investment. The highlighted investment may or may not have been profitable. There is no guarantee that future investments will be similar.
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