Guayaki : When a standing tree is worth more than a felled tree

Yerba mate was traditionally cultivated in Paraguay under the canopy of the Atlantic Forest, in unique natural conditions. For the sake of yield, it was removed from the forest and grown in open fields, under full sun. As a result, the leaves became smaller and lost their nutritional qualities.

Guayaki (now Yerba Madre) offers yerba mate, as well as canned and bottled mate across the Americas, driven by a regenerative vision.

The company decided to reintroduce yerba mate to where it reaches its full potential: the forest. However, this forest has been largely decimated over the years, particularly due to logging. To recreate the ecosystem that maximizes the potential of yerba mate, the company dedicated a large portion of the revenue from its beverage sales to reforestation efforts.

Each beverage sold thus contributes to sequestering more carbon than was emitted during its life cycle, thanks to these reforestation actions linked to the cultivation of yerba mate. Guayaki has redefined its mission as “giving the standing tree more value than the cut tree.” It respects the principle of continuous creation by fostering conditions that maintain life’s ability to regenerate.

Moreover, by committing to cultivating its yerba mate only in a specific place (the Atlantic Forest) where the potential of the beverage is maximized (nutritional and sensory properties), Guayaki clearly embraces the principle of limited growth: instead of seeing the Earth as an infinite resource pool, the company scales its growth based on the limiting factor of crop regeneration in a specific location.

So, concretely, how can I explore and understand continuous creation within my company and its ecosystem?

The first step is to adopt a new perspective and ask myself the following questions to better grasp this dynamic:

• Does my activity create or maintain the conditions for life to regenerate?
• Is the size of my company aligned to the availability of the resources we use, and their rate of regeneration?
  • In other words: Have I listed the natural resources I use that can regenerate (wood, hemp, cotton, fish, fruits, vegetables, spices…)?
  • To what extent have I established the conditions (particularly the scope of our production) to leave these living systems the capacity to regenerate?
• Are the consequences of my company’s activity compatible with our purpose, our societal mission?
• If I push activities to the maximum, is our purpose respected? Have I thought about ways to decouple the negative impact of our activities from our revenue or profitability?
• Through our activities what value do I create that is not financial? With which KPIs? (e.g., community development, restoration of place, new relationships… as co-benefits of my activity—both planned and unexpected)