Named after Agri Resources‘ first vanilla plantation, in the SAVA region of north-eastern Madagascar, cinq frères is a Mauritius-based company that specializes in the commercialization of vanilla grown along the Ankavy river, not far from Antalaha – a small town considered as the capital of the famous spice. The company, which also offers a fine selection of exceptional spices, is now launching a retail business.
A subsidiary of Agro Resources Mauritius, Cinq Frères’ core business includes the production, sourcing, processing and export of high-quality vanilla and spices from Madagascar. Agri Resources Group (a subsidiary of Monaco Resources Group) began investing in vanilla and spice production in Madagascar in 2015 with Cinq Frères’ Director, Matthieu Lougarre and to date owns 3 plantations totalling 145 hectares as well as two processing centres.
Cinq Frères was therefore created to ensure the quality and traceability of products but also to promote sustainable agricultural practices combined with collaborative work with local producers. This partnership has already enabled the loyalty of several large customers from the food and cosmetics industries and today, the company wants to bring the same quality products directly to the retail market. “Our mission is to bring producers closer to consumers, on the one hand, to offer new opportunities and better income to our local partners and on the other hand to guarantee products of better quality and with less environmental impact to our customers” details Matthieu Lougarre Director of Cinq Frères.
Focus on retail marketing
In its expansion process, Cinq Frères is embarking on a new adventure of retail marketing by offering its customers vanilla pods distinguished by Fairtrade and Ecocert’s Organic Agriculture certification. This approach of integrating the cultivation, processing, export and marketing makes the entity the only player in the vanilla sector on the market to have no recourse to any intermediary and to be able to guarantee a product with optimal traceability, from the field to the end consumer. “In addition, all our fields are managed in a sustainable manner following the precepts of agroecology. Absence of chemicals, crop associations, rotations, maintenance of plant cover, preservation of local species and reforestation; all this is integrated into our operations ”assures Matthieu.
Cinq Frères is offering products such as gourmet vanilla from Madagascar, vanilla powder but also high-end spices such as pink berries, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, white pepper, black pepper, wild pepper without forgetting a whole range of exceptional products such as cocoa butter, whole cocoa beans, ginger and kaffir lime zest.
“By reducing the number of middlemen, we can ensure the quality of products that can appeal to everyone from amateur foodies to gourmet chefs at very affordable prices.” Adds Matthieu.
Cinq Frères is a company committed to working with local producers and small farmers. In order to guarantee the traceability, quality and fair remuneration of the farmers, Cinq Frères works closely with the association “Inside Madagascar” and the APVAM (Association des Planteurs de Vanille d’Ankavia Meva), which currently includes more than 600 producers. Involved in the field, Cinq Frères also provides training on the preparation of vanilla in order to improve quality and allow producers to capture a greater part of the added value of the industry. “We focus on education, quality enhancement, fair remuneration and the popularization of good farming practices in order to have a positive impact on the development of local communities and to limit the impact of the vanilla industry on the environment,” adds Matthieu.
Today, Cinq Frères products are sold on the www.cinq-freres.com website and are available for sale and delivery throughout Mauritius.