World Central Kitchen brings a hot meal, a word of encouragement, and a helping hand in the most difficult moments to those who need it.

In June 2018, when Guatemala suffered one of the most devastating disasters in Latin America with the eruption of the Fuego Volcano, WCK activated our Chef Relief Team to lead a comprehensive emergency food response.

We have now made a long-term commitment to supporting Guatemala’s food ecosystem by launching our Food Producer Network in many of the same communities where the Relief Team worked in 2018. The Food Producer Network focuses on strengthening food security by partnering with smallholder farmers, fishers, and food-related small to medium enterprises such as specialty food producers or produce distributors. We support their work through direct grants, capacity building offerings, and networking opportunities.

The first step to implementation was to contract local experts to conduct a Rapid Agricultural Assessment, which was carried out in June 2020. The study sheds light on the current state of smallholder agriculture in Guatemala and helped WCK identify and target the communities most affected by the eruption of the Fuego Volcano – and those that would most benefit from participation in the Food Producer Network.

The Assessment ultimately identified three departments for the program: Sacatepéquez, Chimaltenango, and Escuintla. The eruption of the volcano exacerbated many problems faced by smallholder farmers in these three departments the most common of which are limited access to capital, lack of training, lack of infrastructure, and no access to new markets.

Our goal is to support the farmers, food-related small businesses, and farmers associations of Chimaltenango, Escuintla, and Sacatepéquez with  direct grants to help them fortify their food operations and increase their productive capacity.

Applications for the Food Producer Network in Guatemala open twice a year, in the spring and fall. For more information, please contact us at fpn@wck.org.

FPN by the numbers:

$ 3.7+ Million

Awarded via 234 grants

7,900+

Hours of learning and networking

1,015+

Volunteers on farms and at events

Guatemala Grantees

Get to Know the Grantees

2020 Grantees

Apiario Honey Bees

Apiario Honey Bees is a beekeeping project located on the slopes of the Fuego, Acatenango, and Agua volcanoes.

ASPROC

ASPROC is an association with more than 20 years of agricultural organization and production experience. They are specialists in greenhouse production of organic vegetables using organic inputs that are prepared on site.

CCTE Tilapia de la Faja

CCTE Tilapia de la Faja is an organic tilapia aquaculture farm producing high-quality, affordably priced fish with minimal environmental impact.

Centro de Negocios de mi Tierra Tikonel

El Centro de Negocios de mi Tierra Tikonel is an association that promotes rural organic agriculture, natural forest management, and agroforestry systems.

Cinco Azul

Cinco Azul is an online supermarket providing consumers in Guatemala City and Antigua with sustainably grown farm goods from more than 1,000 producers nationwide.

Cooperativa De Comercialización RL La Asunción

Cooperativa De Comercialización RL La Asunción is a rural cooperative with members who employ a combined 40 years of experience in animal husbandry and five years of technical agricultural training to continue the traditions of their ancestors with the addition of modern techniques.

El Comalote

El Comalote is a food business in Antigua that produces corn tortillas, nachos, tostadas, tacos, dough, tamales, and more from surplus native corn.

Enverdece

Enverdece is a network that provides support with agricultural training, market expansion, and product distribution for smallholder farmers practicing sustainable and regenerative agriculture.