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AgDevCo has invested $7 million in Planting Naturals, a Sierra Leone-based producer of certified organic palm oil.
The financing is designed to bolster the company’s expansion across its cultivation, milling, and logistical operations.
Planting Naturals, which combines produce from both its own estates and a growing network of smallholder farmers, specializes in generating organic crude palm oil (CPO) and palm kernel oil for export markets.
The new capital will support a broad range of enhancements, from increasing harvested fruit volumes and processing throughput to improving the logistical chain.
Accompanying the investment, AgDevCo will also supply technical assistance aimed at enhancing farmer support initiatives, particularly those focused on digital tools and supply-chain traceability.
Kweku Koranteng, AgDevCo’s West Africa regional director, emphasized that the investment embodies the firm’s long-term approach to building resilient agricultural supply chains.
“We are delivering patient, flexible capital that links rural communities to growing demand for sustainably produced palm oil—generating jobs and inclusive economic growth along the way,” he said.
Jan Hein De Vroe, Chief Executive of Planting Naturals, welcomed the partnership, calling AgDevCo a “long-term ally” in the company’s ambition to modernize Sierra Leone’s palm oil sector.
He stated that the funding will fuel expansion, deepen ties with thousands of smallholder producers, and elevate Sierra Leone’s standing as a hub for traceable, certified organic palm oil.
“Our collaboration demonstrates how palm oil production can deliver shared value—boosting farmer income, empowering rural communities, and upholding environmental integrity,” De Vroe added.
Terragon, a leading data analytics company specializing in cloud-based solutions, has secured $9 million in a Series B funding round.
Husk Power Systems, a pioneering cleantech startup operating in Africa and Asia, has successfully concluded its Series D funding round, raising $103 million.
President Joseph R. Biden has announced more than $1 billion in additional humanitarian assistance to address urgent needs arising from food insecurity and crises affecting refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and vulnerable communities in 31 African countries.
