Growing a peanut takes just a few months.
Creating more value from it takes the right equipment.
In Peru’s Piura highlands, more than 270 smallholder farmers are doing more than growing organic crops. Through CAES Piura, a farmer-owned cooperative, they are building stronger livelihoods by producing certified organic peanuts, traditional panela (unrefined cane sugar), and other specialty products, including banana and cassava flours for premium markets.
CAES Piura does far more than purchase crops. The cooperative provides technical assistance, supports organic certification, processes products centrally, and connects farmers with buyers who value high-quality organic products
As Peru’s first cooperative to export certified organic peanuts, CAES has helped augment what farmers can earn from one of the region’s most promising crops.
Today, organic peanuts have become the cooperative’s fastest-growing product. In 2025 alone, CAES purchased approximately 924 tons of shell-on peanuts from 162 certified producers.
As demand has increased, however, one key stage of processing has remained a bottleneck.
Beneficial Returns approved a $300,000 loan to finance new peanut-processing equipment. The investment will increase production capacity from approximately three to four tons per day while enabling CAES to produce higher-value blanched peanuts in Peru. By completing more of the processing locally, more of the value created by the crop can remain closer to where it is grown.
For member farmers, a stronger peanut business can mean greater opportunities to sell their crops into premium markets. For CAES, it means building on a business that has grown significantly in just a few years.
At Beneficial Returns, we believe lasting impact often comes from practical investments that help communities capture more value from what they already grow.
At Beneficial Returns, we believe lasting impact often comes from practical investments that help communities capture more value from what they already grow.