International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

Jose B. Alvarez; Sarah  Mehta

Case | HBS Case Collection | December 2017

International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

Abstract

It is July 2017, and Dr. Nteranya Sanginga, the director general of the Nigeria-based International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), is making progress toward two of his primary strategic objectives for the nonprofit research Institute: 1) to scale the impact and reach of some of the IITA’s most commercially viable products and technologies by working with the private sector, and 2) to address Nigeria’s massive youth unemployment problem by engaging young people in agribusiness.

To achieve his first goal, Sanginga in 2013 established a business incubation platform (BIP), which was tasked with establishing pilot production facilities to illustrate that a select number of IITA products could be profitably manufactured and sold to an existing market. Sanginga hoped that the BIP would attract interest from private sector companies compelled by the business case for taking a particular technology to scale. To achieve his second goal, Sanginga had founded a youth “agripreneurs” program, which would train young university graduates on improved agricultural practices, food processing, and strategies for starting an agribusiness. Since its establishment in 2012, the program had enrolled four cohorts of young people in Ibadan (a total of 70 people) and expanded to four other states in Nigeria and five additional African countries.

hile both programs were making progress, challenges remained. Sanginga had originally hoped that the agripreneurs program would launch dozens of small businesses, but as of mid-2017, it had produced just four independent start-ups. Most of the program’s agripreneurs in Ibadan (53 of the 70) remained affiliated with the IITA. Poor access to commercial loans, which carried interest rates up to 30%, was the primary issue preventing them from starting businesses. The BIP, too, faced challenges. Chief among them was a severe cash flow constraint that prevented Frederic Schreurs from properly forecasting and investing resources to maximize the BIP’s impact. As traffic inched along, Sanginga contemplated how he could steer both the BIP and the agripreneurs program toward long-term success in his remaining four years at the IITA’s helm.

Keywords: Scaling Technologies; Youth Unemployment; Innovation in Nonprofits; Agribusiness; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Cash Flow; Labor; Employment; Commercialization; Problems and Challenges; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Africa; Nigeria;

Language: English

Format: Print

42 pages

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Citation:

Alvarez, Jose B., and Sarah Mehta. "International Institute of Tropical Agriculture." Harvard Business School Case 518-034, December 2017.

Background Note | HBS Case Collection | April 2020

U.S. Food Retail During the Pandemic: March 2020

José B. Alvarez and Natalie Kindred

This note, written in late March 2020 and mainly U.S. focused, looks at the unfolding impact of the coronavirus pandemic on food retailers and their suppliers. It allows student to consider the challenges facing food retail executives as they navigate urgent supply chain challenges amid rapidly changing information and circumstances. It touches on developments in various segments of the supply chain, including farms, manufacturers, the trucking industry, warehouse operators, and store operations, as well as home delivery. The note is “set” as the outbreak is accelerating in the U.S., where the first “hot spots” include cities such as Seattle and New York City. Officials in many states have ordered or advised residents to stay home, exempting those employed in industries designated “essential,” including food. The food industry is contending with a massive surge in demand for staple goods, as consumers worry about product shortages, seek to minimize store visits, and anticipate long stretches of time at home. Stock-outs and rationing in some categories in stores are widespread. Demand for online food shopping and delivery has skyrocketed well beyond the current capacity of retailers in many markets. As they scramble to respond, players up and down the food supply chain are changing how they source, make, move, and stock products. While U.S. officials have asserted that the food system remains reliable, anecdotal news is emerging of problems facing individual players, industry segments, and geographies. With the crisis expected to continue for weeks or months, all are bracing for even greater challenges.

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Risk Management; Food; Supply Chain; Consumer Behavior; Demand and Consumers; Trade; Crisis Management; Food and Beverage Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Retail Industry; United States;

Citation:

Alvarez, José B., and Natalie Kindred. "U.S. Food Retail During the Pandemic: March 2020." Harvard Business School Background Note 520-098, April 2020. View Details

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International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

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