Our spotlight hero of the month is Mahmud Johnson,the founder and CEO of J-Palm Liberia- a company that buys fresh, natural palm kernels from smallholder farmers in rural communities in Liberia. The company cold presses the palm kernels into oil and uses the oil to create a range of natural health and beauty products such as soaps, moisturizers, and hair conditioners. Instead of wasting the palm kernels, a practice that was common in the past, smallholder farmers in Liberia can now earn additional income from selling the palm kernels to J-Palm. Through this process, J-Palm is creating jobs and livelihood opportunities for hundreds of Liberians.
With the growing trends of consumers demanding accountability from brands and the rising demand for product traceability, J-Palm developed a traceability app that seeks to better connect harvesters with buyers and helps agents track the amount of palm oil produced and sold by each harvester. Harvesters can be paid through mobile money for sales made through J-Palm agents. To date, this new technology has been rolled out to 20 communities.
A recent survey found that 98% of harvesters selling to J-Palm agents reported that the app helped them improve their overall income. The incorporation of mobile money streamlines the payment process for those selling through J-Palm agents, eliminating the need for them to travel to receive payment. The app has also enabled the company to demonstrate traceability of the harvest from farm to factory, and subsequently gain ‘Organic Certification’.
J-Palm Liberia has worked with partners ranging from the Whole Planet Foundation to build mini-mills in Liberia and GSMA to leverage mobile blockchain technology to gain efficiencies and transparency in the palm oil value chain.
As an ABH Community, we congratulate Mahmud Johnson for the impact he and his team have had on smallholder farmers in Liberia.
Source: J-Palm Liberia & GSMA
