Project
An allanblackia R&D demonstration farm was established in 2010 in a degraded Forest Reserve in partnership between Unilever and Form international to investigate the productive, agronomic and commercial feasibility of sustainable A.B. oil production. Allanblackia parviflora is a tree species native to many African countries. Seeds of these trees produce high quality oil for application in food and non-food products. To date, 65 hectares have been established, are actively managed and play an important role in ongoing R&D work. First oil production from this pilot site is expected in a few years time, as some of the trees have started bearing fruits. Next to forest restoration, these trees are also tested in mixed production with cocoa with a number of smallholder cocoa farmers.
Our role
Form international has been responsible for a.o. farm design, establishment and management, lead R&D work and collaborate with partners (ICRAF, FORIG, Novel Ghana, IUCN), tree nursery production and research, acquisition of a broad range of genetic material and plant types, and business modelling. Form international is member of the Allanblackia Partnership.
Results
- Largest existing allanblackia plantation in Africa and worldwide
- Key source of input data for allanblackia business modelling
- Key site to generate knowledge on:
- Growth and yield
- Best plantation management practices
- Cost/benefit
- Environmental and ecological impacts
- Largest pool of plant material, genetic sources and diversity of allanblackia in one site
- Important showcase of allanblackia as a species of choice for forest landscape restoration and sustainable farm management.