Ifund provides loan to La Almendrehesa
La Almendrehesa is active in the commercialisation of organic almonds and other artisanal products. In cooperation with AlVelAl, La Almendrehesa propagates the use of regenerative methods for agriculture in local farming practices, thereby fulfilling an essential role in the Altiplano Estepario, a region in Southern Spain.
La Almendrehesa has been created by the organisation AlVelAl, which itself has been initiated by Commonland. AlVelAl was founded in 2014 with the foal of supporting local farmers in the Altiplano in applying methods for regenerative farming. This way, degraded land suffering from desertification and erosion can be restored to a blooming and diverse ecosystem. La Almendrehesa is led by Frank Ohlenschlaeger, a driven and dedicated entrepreneur with a large amount of experience in the region. For these organisations, the ‘4 Returns’ principle is key: investments in land regeneration should result in holistic value for the region as a whole. This value is fourfold and consists of return of inspiration, return of social capital, return of nature, but also return on investment. Via this loan, which will be used as prefinancing, ifund contributes to the 4 Returns in the Altiplano.
For more information of the history of AlVelAl en La Almendrehesa, see this article on the website of Commonland. One of the largest producers for La Almendrehesa is La Junquera, the family farm of Alfonso Chico de Guzmán – a beautiful account of his story can be viewed here.
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