Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative Provides Free Chain Maintenance Training to Farmers in Developing Regions

The company has launched a comprehensive corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative aimed at providing free chain maintenance training and affordable replacement parts to smallholder farmers in developing regions across Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. The program, named “Harvest Sustain,” was developed in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and three local agricultural cooperatives, with the goal of reducing post-harvest losses caused by equipment failure. The training component of the program consists of a mobile workshop that travels to rural farming communities, delivering hands-on instruction in chain inspection, cleaning, lubrication, tension adjustment, and simple repair procedures. The sessions are led by experienced agricultural engineers who speak local languages and adapt their teaching methods to suit varying literacy and education levels. To date, the program has trained over 1,200 farmers across Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Vietnam, and the Philippines. “We often take for granted the availability of skilled repair services in industrialized countries,” observed Dr. Amina Diallo, Head of CSR and Sustainability. “In many developing regions, a broken chain on a combine harvester or threshing machine can mean the loss of an entire harvest, pushing vulnerable families deeper into poverty. Our Harvest Sustain program empowers farmers with the knowledge they need to keep their equipment running, and our subsidized parts program ensures that affordable replacements are accessible when needed.” In addition to training, the program provides discounted chain replacement kits and lubricants through local agricultural supply stores, with subsidies funded by a portion of the company’s annual profits. The company has also committed to donating 5% of its agricultural chain production to food security programs administered by the FAO. The Harvest Sustain initiative is currently in a three-year pilot phase, with plans to expand to Latin America and South Asia by 2028.