With most of the world’s uncultivated arable land found in Sub-Saharan Africa, there is an opportunity for agricultural expansion. Agricultural growth must include the transition from subsistence to commercial farming. Agricultural growth that includes small commercial farmers’ boosts food availability and incomes, and thus generates demand for locally produced goods and services, resulting in broad-based socio-economic development in rural communities.

JAM is expanding a range of agricultural development activities alongside our existing programmes. Our agricultural programmes are critical to helping rural communities to feed and lift themselves out of extreme poverty.

JAM’s agricultural targets are encapsulated in our FEED Cycle (Farm, Empower, Enhance and Distribute), developed over more than 30 years of targeted agricultural and nutritional development. We have defined a model for sustainability through commercial farmer development, which encompasses training, transport and logistical support, factory production and nutritional feeding.

Farm
We do commercial FARM development through our larger-scale JAM operated commercial farms and the establishment of local commercial farmers as the nucleus for our crop production needs. JAM establishes local commercial farmers on 5 to 10 hectare farms and gives them access to top quality inputs and support. We ensure that women are given equal opportunity to farm and own land.

Empower
JAM is increasing the local agricultural production capacity through the EMPOWERMENT of these small emerging commercial farmers. By helping them to become established as commercially viable farmers we are growing their farming enterprises and the local agricultural economy. We provide on-going training and technical support to increase their yields farming practices; Land clearing and farm infrastructure development; Access to high-quality inputs at low prices; Provision of mechanised services and irrigation; Off-take contracts for initial crop production at market-related prices, and access to financing at formal market lending rates.

Enhance
JAM establishes processing factories within the local market to ENHANCE the commodities grown at the farms. The factories add value to the commodities, to increase both the food value and market value. This processing is from basic sorting, drying and bagging of commodities, to the production of fully pre-cooked fortified blended foods (such as Corn Soy Blend). Our factories are modern facilities that adhere to stringent international quality assurance standards.

We are developing an efficient supply chain, which is key in the agricultural value chain, with industrialization being paramount to the establishment of sustainable agricultural economies in African countries.

Distribute
Our nutritious food products are DISTRIBUTED through our social programs and to commercial markets. JAM has a strong logistical infrastructure to support the storing, transportation and distribution of the product. Our food products are distributed for social development through school feeding programmes and health and nutrition programmes. These enable improved health and education of children most vulnerable in Mozambique. When a child receives food at school then they are motivated to attend school consistently and their ability to gain an education increases.

We distribute quality food products to the local commercial market, through the JAM supported local trading businesses with a strong focus on female-owned businesses.

Angola
190 school gardens established.

Mozambique
180 school gardens established.

FEED
This efficient, scalable and sustainable approach aims to change economic scenarios by making farming profitable for communities.

South Sudan
21 farming projects implemented through Food for Assets in co-operation
with the UN’s World Food Programme.

South Africa
900 backyard and community garden farmers trained in Gauteng
province.