Barfoots has been farming in St Louis, Senegal, since 2006. What started out as a small trial plot of sweetcorn to test climatic suitability, seasons and yield in sub-Saharan conditions has now become Barfoots’ greatest supply-base investment, producing its entire portfolio of specialist crops, including sweetcorn, sweet potato, asparagus, onions and butternut squash.
Barfoots chairman Peter Barfoot took time out to talk exclusively to FPJ about his African dream.
How did a quintessential English grower from West Sussex start farming innorthern Senegal?
Peter Barfoot: The challenge for a quintessentially British grower is what to do when the English cropping seasons ends. Our customers expect 52 weeks of continuity of quality supply, so we’ve spent years building and refining our import supply chain to deliver on that expectation and achieve competitive advantage. Based on day length and climatic suitability, Senegal was established as one of many trial locations we began looking into back in 2002, to strengthen our winter supply and grow the market.
Why choose Africa to set up aproduction base?
PB: Africa is a massive continent and has many different climatic regions, altitudes and well-known geopolitical challenges. Finding the right location was not simply just about the climate, light hours and soil to grow sweetcorn; but also about balancing our needs against long-term sustainable supply of water, land availability, people and logistics within the framework of a politically stable economy. The question as to why we made the decision to be the first British company to invest in farming in Senegal is because all these venture-critical criteria were the most balanced for us among other options we were looking at.
HasBarfoots Senegal expanded beyond initial expectations? What key factors have contributed to its growth and success?
PB: Our venture has grown from a trial plot of 30 acres in 2005 and we are now farming over 5,000 acres. We started with low expectations because it’s the hardest environment we’ve ever worked in. We are very proud of what has been achieved from a very basic starting point; but risks remain high and a great deal of hard work continues to keep the business viable.
What were the main challenges in the early days, and what are the main challenges now growing in an African country to supply the UK?
PB: Sustainable high-service levels can only be achieved through dedicated and skilled people. In Senegal, the biggest challenge remains getting quality people who have the linguistic skills, aptitude and character to commit to building their careers in a relatively isolated third-world situation. The environment is very unforgiving and all resources are limited, so equipment maintenance will always be problematic. Investment in, and improving functionality of, hard assets is an ongoing challenge. Shipping is also a monopoly model and very expensive. Airfreight facilities are non-existent. A lot of government investment is required.
What procedures do you have in place to guarantee food safety and worker safety in this developing country?
PB: Food safety is critical to our operation, given that we are working with Europe’s most discerning retailers. All farms in our Senegalese group are audited to GlobalGap, BRC, independent retailer accreditations and SEDEX. Ensuring that all employees are trained in hygiene and understand the prerequisite UK and EU legislation for food safety is paramount. The management team has a strong track record in delivering audit compliance and is accountable to our UK team.
We are also audited by the NGO Partner Africa every two years for social and environmental compliance. To ensure we are setting the right standards, we have established worker welfare groups; but our investments also go beyond the immediate business and into the local community villages for sanitation, potable water, education and health services.
Traditional perceptions are of western countries plundering Africa for their own benefit. How was Barfoots’ ventureinitially received by the local community?
PB: Three hundred-plus years of colonial rule and cultural imperialism has left its mark on the global map. We are not here to debate the rights and wrongs of what has gone before us, but to assist and support sustainable development in Senegal through our privileged role as the ‘economic actor’ going forward. This is the difference between commercial models and NGOs. Countless NGO campaigns have failed because they have ignored market economics or were unable to deal with corruption. The output of these NGOs is that they have raised and wasted untold sums of benefactors’ money on projects that were ill-conceived and poorly managed chasing charitable agendas.
Our business in Senegal was borne out of a relationship with the community of St Louis and has at its core a business model that creates employment, pays the living wage, trains, sustains and develops local resources in pursuit of export sales, with secondary class product supplying local markets.
Crucially taxes are paid and an agreed percentage of profits are returned to the local community for infrastructure projects. Importantly, we see our Senegalese farming operation as a long-term asset beyond the next 50 years. In a world where availability of food and water will become increasingly important as the global population rises beyond 10 billion, if we can overcome environment challenges in Senegal, and if the government got behind the sector, it could become a more significant agri-exporter.
Can you provide some examples of how your venture has benefited the localcommunity, socially and economically?
PB: Before we started up in 2007, there was only a local pastoralist and small-scale fishing economy in St Louis, with tourism the biggest source of income. Prior to our success, there were no prospects for the tribal youth in the region – who would leave their villages seeking their futures in the city of Dakar, seldom returning.
Our presence in the region has created opportunities for them as they now have an opportunity to develop long-term careers with us. Their return has brought back vibrancy to the tribal communities, with the trickle-down effects of income generation increasingly visible. New tarmac roads, new housing developments, service industries and micro business start-ups are all springing up where before there were only dirt tracks.
We have invested in local schooling infrastructure to ensure that the increasing local population has a safe place where children can learn during working hours, where previously educational access was extremely limited. In addition to education, a healthy workforce is a key requirement for the viability of the business and so we provide on-site medical facilities for staff and their families, with a daily free canteen to ensure the nutritional intake of workers is met.
What advice would you give a UKproduce firm thinking of establishing ties in Africa?
PB: There are plenty of case studies of failure out there, so research well and learn from these. Importantly, be very careful where you get advice from and understand the differences in law. Crucially, understand and respect the history, culture and values of the people and local customs. The Senegalese people are extremely friendly and welcoming of visitors, but if any venture is to be a success, it will be one where the people are front and centre.
