Chongqing - The Dutch banking giant Rabobank inked an agreement last Friday with Chongqing Agricultural Chain Corporation to set up the first-ever Agri3 Fund project in Asia, through which a three-year loan of CNY70 million will be provided to help farmers switch from poor yielding crops to more lucrative and sustainable pepper cultivation.

"This transaction is of great significance to us, we want to thank Rabobank and Agri3 for supporting the poverty alleviation program in western China with this transaction," said Tao Fugang, general manager of Chongqing Agricultural Chain Corporation Limited (CACC), at a Symposium on Chongqing's Capsicum Industry Development.

Also present at the symposium were Koen Sizoo, consul general of the Consulate General of Netherlands in Chongqing, Paul Schuilwerve, chief executive officer of Rabobank China, Chen Song, chairman of Chongqing Agricultural Resources Group, CACC's parent company, and officials from Wushan County People's Government.

After a bilingual welcome speech from the CACC side, Paul Shuilwerve went on stage and gave a presentation on Rabobank China, Agri3 Fund, and the outlooks for the partnership with Chongqing's chilly-growing farmers.

"With the help of CACC, our Agri3 Fund project is looking to double the local agricultural productivity and ensure a more sustainable food production system," said Paul Schuilwerve.

"By moving the farmers from crops with lower value to higher-value crops such as red pepper, and also by doing this in a sustainable manner with regards to input as well as outputs, we'll be able to provide the farmers with a clear income perspective and therefore help them get out of the poverty trap."

Founded as a cooperative of farmers in the Netherlands in 1898 to promote resilience in agriculture, and has now grown to become one of the world's largest financial institutions with high credit ratings and a focus on agricultural sustainability, Rabobank has established a strong footprint in China, with its Asia head office based in Hong Kong and two branch offices set up in Beijing and Shanghai.

The Agri3 Fund is an ambitious partnership by UN Environment and Rabobank, which aims to unlock at least USD1 billion in finance towards deforestation-free, sustainable agriculture and land use, with farmers sitting at the heart of the fund.

This newly launched Chongqing Agri3 Fund focused on the chilly industry is Rabobank's first-ever such project in China, and even in Asia, which is expected to serve as a 3-year financial facility supporting as many as 80,000 smallholder farmers in cultivating their land use sustainably and in improving their livelihood.