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On June 9, 2010 Janine Rossmann (Quality Department gebana Brasil) attended Oikocredit's general meeting to introduce gebana Brasil to the participants there. Oikocredit is an international cooperative headquartered in the Netherlands. Its aim is to promote development by granting loans to microfinance institutions, cooperatives and small businesses of disadvantaged people in developing countries and to mobilize church and private capital for such projects. Oikocredit is a long-standing partner of gebana AG and in 2007 approved a loan of 100,000 USD for the expansion of gebana Brasil's soy lecithin plant.
As part of the Oikocredit general meeting, 3 awards were given for outstanding projects. Among other things, the projects had to meet the following criteria:
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The loan must have been granted more than 18 months ago and the repayments as well as the monitoring reports must have been completed within the specified time limits.
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The project must act in a socially responsible manner and this must have been demonstrated through visits or reports by Oikocredit's local branch.
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The project should play an active role in biological, environmental, or waste accounting. This evidence can, for example, be provided by organic production. This demonstrates a sustainability that will allow future generations to meet their needs.
After a company tour and the presentation of the award to the CEO, Cesar Colussi, we went to the Artesanato. This is a local shop that sells products made in the region (handicrafts, foodstuffs and cachaça).
Afterwards there was a joint lunch with producer families on the programme and a visit to the gebana farmer Alberto Fritzen. The visitors from Oikocredit greatly enjoyed the day and returned to their home countries with our producers with many impressions and interesting conversations.