We grow food.
We protect the land
we grow it on.
A farm that depletes its land doesn't survive three generations. Every practice on this farm — from the drip lines in the grove to the solar array above the packhouse — is designed to keep this land productive for the next century.
Profit and responsibility are not opposites.
We reject the framing that sustainable farming is a cost to be managed. Our drip irrigation system costs more than spray irrigation — and it has reduced our water consumption by 62% while improving fruit consistency. Our solar array was expensive in 2015 — it now saves us $180,000 per year in diesel costs and eliminated our on-farm carbon footprint.
We measure sustainability in three dimensions: environmental stewardship, economic resilience, and community impact. Our annual Rainforest Alliance audit covers all three, and the results are shared publicly with our import partners.
Leave the land better than we found it
Cover cropping, composting, and zero synthetic pesticide policy. Soil organic matter has increased 2.3% since 2015 baseline testing.
Use only what the land can regenerate
Water, energy, and biological inputs are tracked weekly. Any metric trending upward triggers an immediate operational review.
Share the value with the community
10% of annual net profit is directed to community programmes. This is written into the company's founding articles, not a discretionary allocation.
Drip irrigation saves 62% of our water.
In 2011, we converted the entire cultivated area from overhead spray irrigation to subsurface drip — a two-year process that cost $2.4 million and reduced our annual water consumption from 4.8 million cubic metres to 1.84 million.
Each irrigation zone is managed individually with soil moisture sensors that trigger watering only when the root zone falls below a defined threshold. The system is GPS-mapped and logged — we can export a 10-year irrigation history for any 10m × 10m block on the farm.
Rainwater harvesting from rooftops and paved areas captures an additional 290,000 cubic metres annually, which is stored in two on-farm reservoirs and used entirely for irrigation — no borehole extraction required from August to January.
800 kW solar array. Zero diesel dependency.
Our first solar installation in 2015 — a 600 kW array over the packhouse and cold storage roofs — reduced diesel consumption by 74% in its first year. We expanded to 800 kW in 2020, adding a ground-mounted section that now powers the entire irrigation pump network.
Combined with a 1.2 MWh lithium battery storage system installed in 2022, the farm operates entirely on solar-generated power during daylight hours and from stored energy between sunset and midnight. Grid connection is maintained as a backup only — in 2024, we drew zero grid power for 287 days.
The soil that makes great avocados deserves to be protected.
We have used zero synthetic pesticides since 2017, transitioning entirely to integrated pest management — a combination of beneficial insect habitat, pheromone traps, and targeted biological treatments where necessary. The transition took three years and resulted in zero change in yield or quality.
Cover crops between avocado rows fix nitrogen, prevent erosion, and provide habitat for pollinators. We maintain 18% of the total farm area as uncultivated wildlife corridor — far above the Rainforest Alliance minimum of 10%.
Compost from packhouse waste, prunings, and harvest residues is returned to the soil. Our annual soil testing programme tracks organic matter, pH, and 22 micronutrients across a 400-point farm-wide grid — results drive the fertilisation programme for the following season.
The farm and the community grow together.
We employ 340 permanent staff and 120 seasonal workers, the vast majority from Usa River, Tengeru, and surrounding villages. Beyond employment, our community investment fund — 10% of annual net profit — supports the programmes below.
School Support
Annual funding for two primary schools in Usa River: infrastructure maintenance, teacher training bursaries, and a school meals programme serving 820 children daily.
- 2 schools supported
- 820 children fed daily
- 14 teacher training bursaries annually
Women's Cooperative
The Kilimanjaro Women's Agricultural Cooperative — founded with farm support in 2012 — has 180 members who grow vegetables and herbs sold to Arusha hotels and restaurants.
- 180 active cooperative members
- Farm provides land, tools, and training
- Members' average income up 3× since joining
Clean Water Access
In partnership with Water.org and Arusha Regional Council, we have funded the construction of clean water infrastructure serving Majengo, Kikatiti, and Usa River town.
- 3 communities with piped clean water
- 4,200 direct beneficiaries
- Maintenance fund endowed for 20 years
Our sustainability report is published every April.
Full Rainforest Alliance audit results, water and energy data, community investment figures, and forward targets. Available to all import partners and publicly on request.