Partnership opportunity assessment
, CBD production in Malawi

Site assessment preparation

As the three sites of the potential local partner, a well known mango producer, are close to each other, FGM specifically prepared the investigation phase with a preliminary remote assesment of the common regional conditions. This focused on :

• Social environment and local policies that may have a social impact on the development of the local economy,
• Collection of natural conditions’ data including overall soil potential and climatic conditions,
• Review of the actual land occupation and site access using remote-sensing tools.

Assessment of the crop compatibility with neighboring mango trees

On-site assessment

As the medical-grade cannabis production standards are very challenging and close to those of organic requirements, the on-site assessment focused on the following:

• Review of initial assumptions,
• Interview of the local partner to understand his development target and review the current agricultural practice on his orchards,
• Assessment of soil potential and collection of samples on land to be used for the cannabis production with a special focus on traces of inputs or pesticides,
• Inspection of the condition of the infrastructures that may be used by EXM Ceuticals (greenhouse nursery, energy reliability, drip irrigation, dryer and storage facility),
• Overview of the social and environmental impact of the project,
• Review of site location and access.

Inspection of the greenhouse nursery

Reporting

FGM findings and recommendations were reported in detail including :

• Identification of key factors of success and main challenges to overcome,
• Project phasing enabling quick installation and optimum scale-up opportunities,
• Specific agronomic recommendations.

Provided services in the frame of this project

• Agri-feasibility Study

Interesting reading relevant to this project

• A practical approach to corporate social responsibility (CSR)