Regenerative Agriculture Consultant

Role: Strategic Initiatives Regenerative Agriculture - Mexico Consultant

Location: Remote from Latin America

Timing: January 8, 2024 – April 26, 2024 Language: Spanish and English

Project Grand/Funding : Secured

To apply: Please share your resume via email with Tali Naibryf at tnaibryf@tns.org

Established in 1968, TechnoServe works with enterprising people in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses and industries . We are a

U.S. based non-profit that develops business solutions to poverty by linking people to information, capital and markets. Our work is rooted in the idea that hardworking people can generate income, jobs and wealth for their families and communities, when they are empowered with the right knowledge and access to markets. We operate in 30 countries across Africa, Latin America, as well as in India, and have a global team of 1,300 individuals, more than 90% of whom are host country nationals.

TechnoServe is highly focused on corporate partnerships, one of the central pillars of our strategy. Revenues from corporations account for 25% of our ~$90M global revenues. As such, TechnoServe has a dedicated Strategic Initiatives Team (15 individuals across U.S. and UK) focused on supporting corporate partners develop inclusive supply chains in emerging markets. This team combines strategic expertise from the private sector – team members are recruited from top-tier strategy consultancy firms such as McKinsey, BCG, Bain - with practical, grounded knowledge based on working in emerging markets.

The Strategic Initiatives Team works with corporate partners to design their inclusive supply chain and local economic development objectives and to quantify the practical business case for what it would take to deliver. We often then work with our partners as an implementing partner on the ground. The team currently manages TechnoServe’s global relationships with Partner, Anglo American, Walmart, ABInBev, Syngenta, The Coca Cola Company, Cargill, John Deere, Kellogg’s, Visa, Mastercard, Mars, and Unilever.

TechnoServe has been selected as a preferred strategic sustainability partner by a major global consumer-packaged goods company to deliver its ambitious corporate commitment on regenerative agriculture , also contributing to its net zero carbon agenda. Partnering with an industry-leading company to drive the transformation towards regenerative farming systems across its global supply chains is directly aligned with TechnoServe’s Regenerate 30 vision. We will help strengthen the resilience of the farmers and businesses that operate within the market system, while also contributing to the overall sustainability of that system by delivering positive outcomes on soil health, water resources and biodiversity.

A key component of our support is the design and implementation of Regenerative Agriculture projects with suppliers and farmers around the world. Bringing the strategy to life requires working with implementation partners to design and deliver projects on the ground with the company’s suppliers, and with the farmers that their supplier’s source from. The process for each project involves an initial feasibility assessment and project design phase, followed by 3-5 years of technical assistance and co-investment. The scale of the company’s sourcing footprint implies launching at least 30+ projects per year by 2027.

The company has engaged TechnoServe to design multiple programs, including with a strategic supplier in Mexico , addressing regenerative practices while also contributing to reduce the overall carbon footprint.

TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives (SI) Team is looking for a Consultant to join the team over a 2-3 month period to support this exciting initiative. The Consultant will report to the SI Senior Manager who oversees our work with this company (Cole Blum) and will work closely with the SI Senior Director responsible for this corporate partnership (Myriam Sainz) and SI Consultant and Project Lead for Mexico.

The Consultant’s responsibilities will include the following types of activities:

• Technical knowledge sharing: support the TNS SI team to familiarize themselves with regenerative agriculture best practices, scientific research, case examples and relevant industry context
• Project analysis tools: engage with TNS SI team to co-design the regenerative agriculture “diagnostic and design” tool and interview guides that will be used during the field research
• Field research: Accompany the TNS SI team during approximately 1-2 weeks of supplier and farm visits in January and/or February as the regenerative agriculture expert
• Technical analysis and project design : Lead the technical assessment of the farms’ regenerative agriculture status, the recommendation of farming practices (and the combination and sequencing of them, highlighting opportunities, trade- offs and risks), and the identification of the implications on the operating model and finances of the farming business.
• Client engagement : Participate in meetings with the company’s suppliers and their agronomists, playing an active role in technical discussions around the assessment and design of a regenerative transition plan.

The Consultant is expected to be available to travel to the location of the supplier and farm visits for the 1-2 weeks of field research, and to dedicate at least 80% of the working hours to the project during such visits. The Consultant will conduct the rest of the activities described above as remote and part time support (before and after the field research).

The Consultant will support development of the main deliverables for the regenerative project design for Mexico with the following deliverables:

• Review program main components, adding technical explanations, potential results and main barriers to adopt
• Guidelines on operational feasibility and steps to adopt each practice
• Implementation Plan
  • Scaling strategy of a timeline of practices adoption
  • Budget assumptions and inputs: estimate operational costs (examples of products, types of inputs and average market prices)
  • Implementation partners, labs and expert recommendations
• Incentive and Funding
  • Share viewpoint on how to structure the incentives and funding split, meaning, the farmer client & supplier share of each intervention based on risk vs. reward profile (e.g. which % share a farmer would be willing to contribute for each intervention based on their risk/reward profile)
• Business Case
  • As able, provide historical examples for the transition to Regen Ag:
    • Historical input costs (herbicide, fungicide, insecticide, fertilizer, compost, micro-organisms, etc.)
    • Historical change of quantity for each input application
    • Productivity history (onions and other vegetables/crops)
    • Soil tests and bioanalysis results (changes on soil organic matter, improvement on soil biomass, etc.)

• 10+ years of experience as farm manager and/or lead agronomist / consultant in Mexico (or similar climatic zone in the region)
• Demonstrated experience advising and/or implementing regenerative solutions to improve soil quality, conserve water, enhance biodiversity, and reduce GHG emissions, including minimum/no-till, cover crops, crop rotation and approaches to reduce fertilizer and pesticide usage. Preferably in onion or similar crop.
• Ability to project the impact of introducing regenerative practices on farm performance and farm economics, and recommend different combinations and sequencing of practices to minimize risk
• Ability to work independently, flexibly and responsively
• Able to prioritize and meet deadlines
• Ability to travel to accompany the team on field visits within Mexico

If travel is required, TechnoServe will cover travel-related costs including international airfare, in-country accommodation, in-country transportation, a per diem for living expenses, visas and vaccinations, and emergency evacuation insurance.

The Consultant will report into TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives team and will also collaborate with in-country teams. While under the supervision of the Strategic Initiatives team, the bulk of the Consultant’s work will be independently driven and executed.