The Social Enterprise

How do you combat chronic child malnutrition in Guatemala? With fortified corn full of the nutrients that growing bodies need. Semilla Nueva is a social enterprise that develops and expands the use of biofortified corn in Guatemala. Semilla Nueva funds their life-changing work through the sale of seeds, and foundation and donor support.

The Challenge

Guatemala has the worst rate of child stunting - chronically impaired physical and mental growth - in the Western Hemisphere: 50% of children overall, and nearly 70% in rural areas.

Families across the country eat tortillas three times a day, but the corn used to make them has low nutritional value. Despite Semilla Neuva’s protein-enriched maize and education efforts, risk averse farmers were unwilling to plant an unfamiliar corn crop.

The Research

Appleseed did on-the-ground research in Guatemala to understand why farmers didn’t adopt the new seeds. Farmer home visits and community surveys revealed key insights, which led our partners to stop talking about nutrition completely.

Taking Action

Appleseed helped Semilla Nueva develop a seed brand called FORTALEZA, emphasizing strong families and the best eating experience. Instead of hosting farmer info sessions, we promoted the new brand through agriculture stores partnerships and farmer field days, where leading farmers could see demonstration plots with their own eyes. Tortilla taste tests also proved that FORTALEZA was the best corn to eat, far superior to leading brands from Monsanto (DeKalb) and DuPont (Pioneer). 

The FORTALEZA brand resonated deeply with farmers who used the posters and marketing materials we created to do grassroots promotion influencing neighbors in their communities. Local agro-supply store employees also became brand ambassadors. FORTALEZA became known far and wide.