Alsec

Development impacts

• Local economic growth

  - Supporting 170 direct jobs over 3 locations and enabling the projected creation by 2030 of 55 permanent jobs in the ex-conflict, rural area of Yarumal which faces poverty, lack of opportunities and displacement.   

  - All Milsec's current and future suppliers are local SMEs and smallholders, with who the company wants to build a solid relation, also by offering technical assistance to increase the quality of milk/whey production and promote sustainable practices. The sole current supplier is a local SME (El Llano) which sources from 800 smallholders. By 2027, Milsec foresees to source from 47 SHFs directly and from 1082 indirectly (through local SMEs purchases).   

  - Supporting one of the few companies in LatAm to have a production facility  for whey powder, thus creating domestic value by processing a by-product of milk that would otherwise be wasted. The production will contribute to decrease Colombia's imports of milk whey while increasing the country's exports: 5% of the revenues are currently generated from exports to Latin America, foreseen to reach 16% of total revenues by 2027. 

• Private sector consolidation/innovation

  - Driving innovation in the sector thanks to in-house developed technologies used in the production phase (spray drying, microencapsulation and nanotechnology), for which the company holds several patents. The company has been awarded prices for innovative technology like the NASA Deep Space Food Challenge in 2021.   

  - Enabling the expansion of Alsec’s only protein-based product line while creating and consolidating market opportunities for local cheese producers (SMEs and SHFs), unlike competitors that mainly import raw material. Milsec's products are a novelty in the region, thus diversifying Colombia's food industry landscape and gaining market share over foreign competitors.

• Food security & rural development

  - Setting up a supplier base that will create economic opportunities for SHFs indirectly (through Small-Medium cheese factories) and directly (in the future), totally onboarding 1,129 SHFs by 2027 (projections). Enabling the SMEs to potentially increase the premium price paid to the smallholder suppliers of milk. Setting up a value creation plan with the support of DFCD for the smallholder farmers on the topics of sustainable farming and climate-resilient farming techniques.   

  - Contributing to domestic and regional offer of ingredients for nutrient augmented products, including supplemented food and health/nutrition related products (by 2026, 38% of sales to hospitals and government food and health programs). These products are cheaper compared to imported products, do not need refrigeration to be stored and have a longer shelf life compared to most other milk-derived products. 

• Fight against climate change

  - Substantial contribution to nature - supporting a circular economy model  transforming a by-product of milk (whey) into a high-quality and highly nutritious ingredient, thus seizing a waste-to-value opportunity that also avoids discharge in the environment done in violation of local law (59% of whey is currently illegally discharged), therefore reducing contamination of soils and nearby waterways. 

  - Substantial contribution to climate mitigation - supporting the production of a protein product made from inputs considered as waste, therefore with a lower carbon footprint than most traditional protein or plant-based protein products.  

  - Promotion of climate adaptation actions - supporting a company that will be providing trainings to the SHF with partial focus on climate resilient farming practices.