FORTUNE’s annual “Change the World” list is intended to showcase the power of capitalism to improve the human condition by identifying companies that have made an important social or environmental impact through their profit-making strategy and operations.
Companies are ranked on four main criteria:
1. Measurable social impact in terms of the reach, nature, and durability of the company's impact on one or more specific societal problems.
2. Business results: the benefit the socially impactful work brings to the company.
3. Degree of innovation: how innovative the company's effort is relative to that of others in its industry and whether other companies have followed its example.
4. Corporate Integration: how integral the initiative is to a company's overall strategy, and how well that strategy is communicated through the ranks and elsewhere.
The initial solicitation and assessment of nominees are conducted in partnership with the Shared Value Initiative, a global platform for organizations seeking business solutions to social challenges. A team of journalists from FORTUNE then investigates each of the candidates independently. The final list is selected and ranked by the editors of FORTUNE based on the magazine’s own reporting and analysis.
EWS was selected based on our achievements ranked by the Access to Seed Index, the World Food Prize and importantly our continuous work and dedication to improving the livelihood of smallholder farmers.
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I believe that profit and purpose can work well together to create shared and sustained value for shareholders and stakeholders at large. The successful evolution of EWS justifies this approach.
EWS is a global leader in the tropical vegetable seeds market. Founded by Dr. Simon Groot in 1982, winner of the World Food Prize 2019, EWS' focus is developing improved vegetable varieties to help smallholder farmers increase their production and incomes. EWS is ranked #1 in the 2019 Global Access to Seed Index, which recognizes the commitment and performance in providing the World's smallholder farmers access to quality seeds.
The Founder’s philosophy of putting more money in the pockets of farmers through quality seeds and knowledge on improved farming practices remain at the heart of what we do and remain our purpose. It has been the guiding principle during these nearly 40 years of EWS. Breeding for local markets are providing locally-adapted seeds, we have local R&D presence so we are able to develop varieties that are suitable with local consumer, climate, and pest /disease conditions. Almost 40 years, we have been expanding across geographic territories covering almost all tropical countries ranging from Guatemala to Nigeria to Myanmar. The company has grown through direct presence (10 main markets, export to 60 markets) and our work with smallholder farmers in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nigeria, Philippines, Tanzania, Uganda through training and knowledge sharing.
Smallholder farmers represent the most important sector in food production. They are vital to food security and nutrition, especially in developing countries. They produce 70-80% of the food supply and are the backbone of the rural economy.
They have a critical role to play in providing food to the world and ensuring the adequate supply of agricultural products, most importantly especially, during the current pandemic as the world population are becoming more concerned about their health and food security. Their role is more important than ever because the world continues to rely on them for food. Furthermore, nutritious crops specifically should receive greater attention from consumers and public health organizations and that, because of that focus, governments could provide the support that could help more farmers grow more nutritious food.
EWS also plays a critical role in making that possible.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic took place, we have continued to get our vegetable seeds as close to smallholder farmers as possible. Disruption of vegetable farming could lead to shortages of nutritious vegetables in the near future. Vegetable farmers need continued access to seeds and other essential agriculture inputs.
Working together with other seed companies, central and local governments, we are doing our utmost to get exemptions from lockdowns in order to minimize the impact on farming and protect the food chain.
Our teams, locally and around the world, have taken actions to continue our mission to serve farmers during the pandemic by providing seeds, supporting communities our farmers live in and keeping farmers connected virtually.
The latter initiative helps farmers to be able to reach out to our experts in any farming issues or even reaching for seeds supply to ensure and sustain the food chain in the country.
The COVID-19 pandemic may stay with us for a longer time than we would expect especially in some countries.
We continue to monitor the situation carefully in all our markets. Even in locations where restrictions are being lifted, we remain vigilant with promoting protective equipment and maintaining social distancing guidelines. The safety and health of our employees and farmers remain our priority.
Our work to support smallholders will remain unchanged in 2021 as we make sure we continue to protect the food chain and bring healthy and nutritious vegetables to the world’s population.
In addition to ensuring smallholder farmers have access to our quality seeds, in 2020, we started various digital initiatives. These digital initiatives are aimed to keep farmers connected and to provide them with the information they need either by learning tools, webinars, online meetings, knowledge and farming techniques sharing. We will continue to do so in 2021 especially in the areas where the COVID-19 pandemic is still present.
We will also keep our Knowledge Transfer program running online and offline as it is vital to support, build relationships and connect with our customers at the deepest levels.
Farmers do the noble work of feeding the world. But despite their skill and hard work, the majority struggle to make a decent living. By providing quality, locally-adapted hybrid vegetable seeds to farmers, our passionate, committed community of employees is setting them up to thrive economically.
Knowledge transfer is a managed nonprofit initiative that seeks to improve the skills, knowledge, and techniques of farmers in the World's most rural, underdeveloped regions. Equipped with advanced agricultural practices, these farmers earn bigger yields and higher profits, which sets the stage for long-term market development. As more farmers adopt these practices, we catalyze the development of competitive input markets.
To enable wider outreach, we leverage additional resources and collaborations, the Knowledge Transfer team works alongside committed and like-minded partners like USAID, ISSD, UKAID, Wageningen University, Solidaridad, Mercy Corps who share our vision of healthier, more economically developed rural communities working towards transforming farming and bringing more varieties of vegetables to more people.
The core principle of Knowledge Transfer remains as focusing on greenfield areas that are commercially not (yet) sustainable for a for-profit seed company. In the long-run, it provides a win-win for all concerned.
East-West Seed dedicates 1.25% of its sales profit for this initiative. About 150 staff train more than 100,000 farmers directly each year in eight countries in Asia and Africa. They aim to reach millions more through other media, such as crop guides translated into the local languages and instructions accessible to all education levels digitally via YouTube and FB.
As a pure-play tropical vegetable seed company, our approach to breeding is unique. We look at highly specific local factors and breed particular varieties with those factors in mind. We do not believe in a "one-size-fits-all" approach — we look at our work as an investment in farmers' success in these regions, and breeding seeds that will thrive in those areas is critical to that work.
COVID-19 has brought into sharp focus the need to reorient the food basket. Plant-based nutrition is a more sustainable system of production and consumption from the environment and nutrition viewpoint. It also fits well with SDG-12 (Responsible consumption and production).
In 2020, East-West Seed sold 24 million value packs for $1 each, containing a small amount of high-quality seed that is perfect for smallholders to plant small plots with vegetables.
More than 20 million farmers in 60 countries plant East-West Seed's 973 improved varieties of 60 vegetable crops on 28 million hectares. With techniques learned from Knowledge Transfer, farmers have doubled or tripled their yield and more than doubled their incomes. The red arrow of East-West Seed's logo is a fond, household name among Southeast Asian farmers.
Our fanatic attention to detail in adapting vegetable varieties to local conditions was an essential part of reaching as many smallholder farmers as possible. With local R&D presence, with 17 R&D stations located in 7 countries, we are able to develop varieties that are suitable for the local consumer, climate, and pest /disease conditions.
It is achieved through our cataloging of over 900 varieties, covering 60 crops. It is the traits that are in our collection that will provide us the material that can be bred into new varieties. That's how we offer a full range approach, following the market's customary and dietary needs.
For example, we have a separate line of indigenous 'heirloom' varieties, mostly loss-leading products. As the market leader, we feel our corporate duty is to sustain the local biodiversity and respect all our markets' stakeholders. In the long run, our approach is more sustainable than looking for immediate profit.
Take an example of India agriculture. According to published reports, agriculture is responsible for about 17 percent of GHG emissions in India. Three-fourths of this is due to methane produced from rice cultivation and livestock, and the remaining 26% comes from nitrous oxide emitted from fertilizers. The share of agriculture in total GHG emissions will increase significantly if crop residue burning, which is now spreading to all states, is considered.
India uses 2-3 times the water used to produce 1 tonne of food in major agricultural countries when it comes to water.
Water intensive crops are being grown in low rainfall areas, and water-intensive practices are spreading. Free or subsidized power for agriculture and free water for irrigation encourage excessive water use and do not leave any water-saving incentive. As a consequence, groundwater resources are getting depleted in almost all states. In this scenario, it is important to adopt better climate-resilient vegetable varieties - e.g., drought-tolerant tomato, disease-resistant crops. East-West Seed is promoting crop diversification, countering the resource depleting mono-culture practices still applied in many of our markets. We are also training our farmers on climate-smart agriculture.
FOR REFERENCE:
Access to Seed Index
In 2016, EWS was ranked #1 in Access to Seeds Index overall and #1 in Eastern Africa. In 2018 and 2019, we retained the #1 ranking in Access to Seeds Index (global and South/SE Asia).
EWS earns the highest score in Research and Development due to the broad breeding programs that include a large number of local crops. EWS also leads in Marketing and Sales because of the extensive distribution channels and the availability of seeds in small packaging, which are accessible and affordable to smallholders. Further, EWS scores high in the Seed Production measurement area because of the collaboration with smallholder farmers, who account for 95% of its production.
Access to Seeds aims to shine a light on how seed companies can step up efforts to improve access to quality seeds of improved varieties for smallholder farmers. It believes that seed companies are a crucial partner in efforts to raise smallholder farmer productivity and achieve food and nutrition security.
2019 - World Food Prize award for Simon Groot
On June 10, 2019, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and President of the World Food Prize Foundation Kenneth M. Quinn announced Simon N. Groot as the 2019 World Food Prize Laureate.
The "Nobel Prize for Food," the 2019 World Food Prize honors the unique achievements of Simon Groot and East-West Seed over the past four decades in successfully developing a dynamic, smallholder-centric tropical vegetable seed industry, starting in Southeast Asia and spreading throughout Asia, Africa, and Latin America. The work has invigorated both rural and urban markets for vegetable crops, making nutritious vegetables more widely available and affordable for millions of families each year.
“Like Dr. Norman Borlaug before him, Simon Groot has dedicated his life to improving the livelihoods of millions around the world,” said Kenneth Quinn.