AGROEMPLEOS "Each green lot, a legacy of opportunities."

The only way to eradicate poverty is thru job creation.

Our solution is based on teaching new skills to the very poor, rural, agricultural farmers/workers in the Dry Corridor of Honduras so they can produce in greenhouses world class agricultural products that are exported to foreign markets.

This complete process could be generating revenue in three months. 

Why foreign markets? Because they pay better prices than local markets.

Why the Dry Corridor? Part of the Central America Dry Corridor, area of Honduras where recent estimates indicate that about 461,000 people suffer from moderate or severe food insecurity, with the highest poverty index, the highest children malnutrition. 

Why then? Because this is the Region where our solution will have the greatest impact.

The problem we are solving is famine in the Dry Corridor Honduras, part of the Dry Corridor of Central America.

Solving the famine problem in the Region, will solve health issues, educational issues, housing issues, entrepreneurial issues of the population involved in our Initiative.

We believe our Initiative could be the project that changes Honduras thru the creation of a massive number of sustainable jobs.

As we increase the take home pay of the workers, thru new skills and sustainable jobs, they will, by themselves or collective, add to the national economic engine and everyone benefits, less poverty, less violence, less social costs, and they are able to buy increasingly more goods and services from the formal economy, more prosperity.

The people that directly and indirectly will be affected by our Program are 1.3 million according to FAO (http://www.fao.org/3/a-br092e.pdf).

A contributing factor to our solution is that we have supported more than 1000 workers from the Dry Corridor, to hold temporary agricultural jobs on greenhouses in Canada, and about 500 of them have come back to Honduras. These workers will be our teachers supervisors to the farmers/workers on the skills and knowledge required to successfully grow products in greenhouses.

We are serving the agricultural farmers/workers from the Dry Corridor Region of Honduras.

We would like to make emphasis on the fact that we know the people we are serving. Since 2010 we have supported more than 1000 workers from the Dry Corridor Region on Temporary Jobs in Canada. These workers earned in Honduras a salary if $4 per day on the average, and as a result of their international job, got out of poverty and became rich.

How will the solution address their needs?

The worker will have a sustainable job that is paid a fair price for his work; money in their pocket  to buy food, food in the table means solving the famine and food security situation and also means being able to send the kids to school, money for construction/repair housing, work for the community, for the brick layer, for the carpenter, for the plumber etc.

The market places firm, high priced orders, the farmers will hire more workers to comply with the order, we will provide supervisors trained in Canada and the United States to give the producer skills and knowledge that will be the advantage required to succeed. 

We will teach agricultural workers and farmers from the Dry Corridor of Honduras, skills to create sustainable jobs to produce agricultural products in greenhouses,  to be sold to foreign market at higher prices .

AGROEMPLEOS will rely on the more than 500 returned temporary workers from Canada so they can teach local farmers, the skills and technologies required to be more productive and efficient growing agricultural products in greenhouses. The returned workers will be hired by the market buyer as a safety net, to supervise the production of the agricultural products they ordered.

The supervisor (returned worker)  will make sure that the agricultural products are compliant with the international standards they learned while they were working in Canada.

The first MARKET SOLUTION we have are the current and past employers of our workers in Canada. Those employers cannot compete with Californian products. The Canadian employers need to heat their greenhouses 8 months of the year at a very high cost. In Honduras, no heat would be needed and their cost could be reduced as much as 70%. On the other hand, Canadian employers are experts growing in greenhouses and selling their products to the USA market, they have the money/resources needed, and the technology required.

Second MARKET SOLUTION, we have negotiated a humanitarian agreement with PUBLIX Supermarkets of Florida, where all  MADE IN HONDURAS products will be bought with priority with the aim of creating jobs and improving the economic conditions of the poorest. PUBLIX is a huge market for our products. It has more than 1,200 supermarkets, sales of $35B in 2018. 

An advantage of selling directly to the supermarket is that the price negotiated is a firm price, not dependent on markets swings, giving the local farmer a great advantage.

The initiative has a huge income potential. On a normal market transaction, a broker buys from the farm at the lowest price, then sells to another broker, and another broker and so on, until the retail store (i.e. supermarket) gets the product. Each broker adds cost to the product, and the final price is many times the original price paid to the farmer.

Selling directly to the retail store allows the farmer to get a firm, fair price, allowing  the retail store to make more money, and for us, the social broker, to have a profit.

Innovation fact 1. Focusing on high price international markets first.

We believe that finding a high price market for our agricultural products, is the key to unleash value (revenue) to everyone involved in the initiative.

Innovation fact 2. Using the Honduran workers trained in Canada and the USA as teachers to our farmers/workers, on skills and technologies needed to grow successfully in greenhouses.

Our solution bets that an international market with HIGH PRICES, together with the skills and technology learned by our "returned temporary workers from USA and Canada" will make our country a world class producer of agricultural products in greenhouses, with massive employment, spreading wealth on the local workers and giving them a better life.

Our approach is not a direct one.

First :              FIND a market for our products.

Second:          NEGOTIATE ORDERS at higher prices to farmers

Third:              Farmers will CREATE sustainable jobs.

Fourth:            Returned workers will TRAIN LOCAL WORKERS on growing in greenhouses.

Fifth:               Farmers will PAY BETTER SALARIES to workers.

Our initiative aims to create sustainable, good paid jobs for workers in the Dry Corridor Region of Honduras. The success indicator of the initiative will be money in the workers pockets, to pay for food, housing, health, education that will translate into less violence, less social unrest, also into an educated, healthy and happy future.

We expect that changing the market for our agricultural products, to a high price international market, will solve all the problems for the local worker, making our country great again.

We used to be called the Central American grain barn some years ago.

There is a pilot program we have been involved in Comayagua Honduras, where a local packer, member of our Initiative,  has negotiated with one hundred small farmers to jointly grow products to fulfill international orders, improving the lives of the small producers. This packer is processing 1 container load per day of fresh vegetables. 

Currently our pilot Program successfully provides service to 100 small local producers from Comayagua.

In one year, with the support of USAID project FINTRAC, we would like to increase this number to 16,000 small local producers from the Dry Corridor Region, on the production of colored peppers, cucumbers, tomato, coffee, grains like corn, beans and rice.

In five years we expect to be serving 100,000 small producers.

With the support of the National Agrarian Institute (INA), we have identified 652 Dry Corridor' Farmer’s organizations, with current legal status, with more than 104,000 hectares of land allocated by the government. This will be the starting point of our initiative.

We aim to direct the experience of our international returning workers, to provide quality, hands on, technical assistance, as required by the farmers that are selected to participate in our Proposal, so it will be a complete success.

Our goal is to have a completely self sustainable initiative in 24 months, growing a minimum of 30% every year thereafter.

Our goal is to be able to provide high paid jobs to anybody who is willing to learn the skills and technologies needed to compete in global markets in the future. 

Our goal is to increase the economic opportunities of small-scale producers and entrepreneurs in the Dry Corridor of Honduras, especially women, youth and marginalized (ethnic) groups living in poverty.

Our goal is to improve the quality of life and food security for the Initiative's workers and farmer’s families in the future, through positive economic development for the individual, the rural community, the region and finally their country.

The initiative needs to be consistent with the national development strategies for the Honduras Dry Corridor. The Dry Corridor of Honduras includes 3.0 million hectares, of which 1.5 million is coniferous forest, special ecosystem of great importance and potential agro-forestry initiatives and water production.

The initiative needs to comply with all guidelines of the Free Trade Agreement with Canada (FTA) and national regulations related to the protection of the environment, gender equality, human rights and governance.

Initial High cost of Initiative. Besides that, from an operations prospective our biggest challenge, based on our previous experience, will be to implement high quality, low cost agricultural production farms in greenhouses that cost a lot of money in Canada.

Our Initiative will be very careful to comply with the National Development Strategies for the Honduras Dry Corridor as specified in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by the government of Honduras in January 2017 and ratified in July 2018 referring to the specific goals of the Government to the different international donors projects.

Our exports need to comply with the different requirements of the  Free Trade Agreement with Canada, and free trade agreement with The United States of America in the areas of labour and environmental cooperation.

Price of a Greenhouse in Honduras.

A one acre greenhouse in Canada cost $1 million.

A one acre greenhouse in Honduras cost US$ 5,000.

This price difference makes the Initiative financially feasible, low cost, fast implementation, efficient.

The farmer that holds a firm, high priced order from a reputable buyer can finance with local sources the initial costs involved in the Initiative.

Replication of our Initiative should be easy in countries that depend upon the export of raw materials to survive. The Fair Market rules are universal, for a fair price, increased production, for increased production new jobs, for the workers with the jobs  money in their pockets, money to be spent on areas of development meaning a better standard of living for everyone involved.

AGROEMPLEOS will select a limited number of products to export on a massive scale to  international markets.

We have employed 13 volunteers to this date.

Administration functions, 4 volunteers.

For every product chosen, we need to hire a minimum of 3 experts volunteers.

To this date we have selected 3 products, 9 volunteers hired:

ButterNut Squash 

Lemons

Coffee

We are best placed to deliver this solution because we look at the problem and possible solutions with extreme passion; we want our people living in that area to have a normal, dignified life, where all their human rights, health, employment, education, etc. provided.

Our team has several members that are or have been farmers, and their comments are based on experience.

Our team also has members that have worked in the past looking for solutions on the famine situation of the Dry Corridor.

We are designing our solution basing upon the farmer’s GREED. The farmer's GREED for profit will create jobs that will solve many social problems in Honduras for the most vulnerable.

A famous quote: “Greed is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms has marked the upward surge of mankind”. 

1- We have partnered to do this project with the Daedalus Foundation.

The Daedalus Foundation is an action-oriented, charitable organization that concentrates upon population-related matters. As our global population grows, many situations and events are greatly exaggerated by the absolute numbers of people involved. Daedalus has three primary mission areas: humanitarian assistance, disaster response, and poverty reduction. Those mission areas remain, but the activities of the Foundation have expanded to include formation of the Daedalus Institute, the Leading Edge Initiative, and the Descansa en Casa (Rest at Home) project. 

Accomplishing objectives in Daedalus' areas of interest depends upon myriad factors including: disaster risk reduction; enhanced disaster response preparedness; creation, maintenance, and restoration of community; and, sustainable, local economic growth.

2- We partner with Deleite Packers in Comayagua for the pilot program.

3- We have partnered with the USAID project FINTRAC, that trains 16,000 small growers.

4- We have partnered with Agrarian National Institute (INA) for information and support on the 652 organized groups of farmers, with resources and government allocated land (104,000 hectares).

The revenue is generated by the huge difference between the high price that is paid to the farmer and the price the consumer pays at the supermarket. Basically from the earth to the table, no middle men.

The impact to the workers involved is life changing, from being on extreme poverty statistics, to becoming rich, and being able to provide adequate health benefits, education, prosperity and in one word, happiness to their families.

Professor Esther Duflo from MIT, winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (2019) for her work on Global Poverty, stated that one of the reasons poor people cannot get out of poverty is because from an early age, their children need to work to help support the family, instead of getting an education. Our Initiative changes that fact.

Another impact we aim to have is to stop people caravans to the USA. Caravans from Honduras in the last few months are made of several thousand people walking from Honduras to the USA, more than 3000 miles, looking for the American dream, a job to cover the cost of their family needs, in view that they cannot find a job in Honduras. Our Initiative will change that, providing good paying jobs in Honduras. 

Low initial cost and high revenue generated by the huge difference between the price that is paid to the farmer and the price the consumer pays at the supermarket.

For example, sweet potato.

The pound of sweet potato is paid to the farmer at $0.17 cents a pound. The supermarket sells it for $1.49 a pound. If we estimate the cost of transportation at $.20 a pound, the total cost would be $0.37 a pound CIF USA. The difference between the selling price and the cost in the supermarket is a wooping $1.12. 

This difference could be used to pay the farmer a better price for the product, maybe $0.30 a pound, and we would sell to the supermarket ar $1.00 a pound.

So the final numbers:

Farmer is paid $0.30/lb

Transportation $0.20/lb

Our Initiative: $0.50/lb

Supermarket cost is $1.00/lb

Consumer cost is $1.49/lb

The revenue would depend on the products selected, the quantities processed. For example, a hectare of sweet potato will yield 65,000 lbs. If the Initiative makes $0.50/lb, the revenue for the Initiative will be US$ 32,500.00 per hectare.

What can I win if my solution is selected?

We can be sure that being selected on the TPrice competition will make our Initiative more credible, and will help us secure funds for the initial stages of the Initiative.

We believe the Initiative will be self sustainable after 24 months.

The hard part is the first step, to start the initial training and production processes. After the first container is exported, the Initiative will be creating revenue, to be used on setting up more farmers/workers to produce.

Our solution has a global scope. We can give a better, dignified life to the poorest, more discriminated population, by offering them skills to a sustainable job... training in new skills in agriculture can change the Dry Corridor Region, we can change Honduras, and lastly can change the world. We would be also responsible for a peaceful community with less violence, healthy with medicines that can be bought, education where the children go to school instead of working in the field, prosperous with increase economic activity and more important happy.

We recognize that our Initiative needs the interaction with experts in each of the products we will be producing.

Experts that set up the requirements of each of the products selected. This requirements we realize change with time, so the experts are needed on a permanent basis.

So our partnerships will initially be with organizations that have the expertise mentioned. In Honduras for example, there is very successful organization called  COMSA that will be the ideal partner for coffee.