Impact
Working with communities and sustainable development are the axes that we have defined as keys to our growth, which day by day materializes in various actions that positively impact southern Chile. We seek to be a real contribution to our communities and contribute to the sustainable development of the inhabitants of all the communes in which we are present. Review and learn about all our initiatives in our 2022 Sustainability Report and in our Sustainability Strategy.
Community
As part of our constant challenge, at Manuka we seek to connect and contribute concretely in different areas to our community. This is how we seek to generate an impact in terms of Rural Development and Education. In the same way, we know that associativity and cooperation between the different actors that are now part of the dairy industry is vital.
Education
Fundación Tres Hojas (Three Leaves Foundation)
With the idea of promoting the dairy industry, we founded the ‘Centro de Capacitación Lechero del Sur’ (Southern Dairy Training Center) in March 2019. The Center operates as an OTEC (accredited technical training organization), through which we channel all the activities of the ‘Fundación Tres Hojas’. This initiative seeks to be an engine for rural development. We contribute to the professionalization of the dairy industry in Southern Chile through training and study programs that are geared towards careers in dairy production.
Fundación Tres Hojas also seeks to create a space for collaborative work within the national dairy industry, including working alongside Unions. We invite all of the key players within the industry to work together to solve education and training issues, and to promote the Southern regions of Chile.
Jardín Sobre Ruedas
We support the Integra Foundation’s ‘Jardín Sobre Ruedas’ initiative, which provides free kindergarten education to children in rural and urban areas with difficult access. We provide space at Manuka and transportation to ensure this mobile kindergarten arrives in our town each Friday, where children can enjoy this educational space.
Bibliomóvil (Mobile Library)
Through an alliance with Fundación La Fuente and the Puerto Octay Town Hall, we participated in the development of a mobile library. This project has made it possible to bring the joy of reading to hundreds of children, young people and older adults within our communities by converting classrooms and social spaces into libraries once a week.
Promotion of rural life
Training Communities
At Manuka we invest in local talent to promote rural life as a cornerstone of our society. We do this through career development programs, and by providing regular training for women entrepreneurs and other members of our community.
We are confident that the creation of local employment and the development of job opportunities allows us to generate growth opportunities for our company and our community.
Calf Donation Program
As a socially responsible company we support our communities in many ways. We established our annual Calf Donation Program in 2014, which benefits different communities in the Los Lagos, Los Ríos and Araucanía regions. In 2019 we donated over 3,600 calves to hundreds of families, small farmers and indigenous communities in southern Chile. Our latest donation is in addition to the 9 thousand animals we have delivered over the last six years, working closely with the Municipalities of each community.
Sport
We consider sport to be a key factor for societal development. Since 2018, we have supported different cyclists in our region, who have won significant titles at the ‘Lake Trek Subaru Tour’ in Puerto Varas and the ‘Vuelta Ciclística de la Leche’. In 2019, we launched the Manuka Soccer School for boys and girls in Puerto Octay, which promotes sport and healthy living among our workers, their families and the community.
Working with others
Transfer of Knowledge
We seek to share our experience and knowledge in dairy production, which is why we welcome national and international visitors each year. We take our visitors on an extensive tour of our fields, where our Manuka tutors teach them about our permanent pastures model.
Campos Australes Cooperative
As part of our commitment to promote the dairy industry in Chile, we have participated in the Campos Australes Cooperative since its inception in 2018. This Cooperative is led by the Sociedad Agrícola y Ganadera de Osorno (SAGO) (Osorno Agricultural and Livestock Society). Its objective is to provide economic stability to local producers – who are key members of the production chain – through the delivery of tools that allow greater bargaining power.
Campos Australes has 41 partners who produce more than 350 million liters of milk between them, representing 15% of Chile’s milk production. The Cooperative focuses on the commercialization of milk produced by dairy farms in the Los Lagos and Los Ríos regions that operate using natural grasslands production. The challenge for the Cooperative is to open a plant and commercialize its own dairy products in the near future.