Coopecan - Alpaca wool cooperative in Peru

Coopecan in Peru focusses on the increase of production of alpaca fibre. The cooperative wanted to increase and improve the production of the fibre.

Introduction

Coopecan was involved in 3 of the 5 regions in Peru, and focussed on the increase of production of alpaca fibre, benefiting about 5000 small producers, which means that the work done by Coopecan directly benefits approximately 3.33% of families and vicuñeras alpaqueras in the country. Since early 2011, Coopecan directly entered the international market, exporting alpaca Tops (washed, combed and carded fibre). The cooperative wanted to increase and improve the production of the fibre and also work on the improvement of value addition with the support of Agriterra.

Result:

In 2012 the cooperative decided to take a new step and enter the competitive world of fashion, for which renowned designers were hired who produce garments collections. These designs have been presented with great success in Peru Moda 2012 and 2013. In 2013 COOPECAN designed and registered a trademark "Pachaqaytu" for craft yarn produced in the spinning craft shop located in Sichuan and also their own brand "Alparcas" for clothing wear.

Aware of the problems of low quality of alpaca fibre in the regions and after a serious analysis, in late 2012, COOPECAN decided to strengthen the production chain. With support from the Peru Opportunity Fund (POF) the project "Strengthening of production capacities and management of producers alpacas, Puquio and Sichuan" was implemented, aiming to improve the quality of the alpaca fibre, and thus increase the income of the producing partners.

The year 2013 was a year of great challenges for Coopecan. In February the alpaca fiber processing plant was closed, which meant there was nowhere to process. An attempt was made to process the fiber in other plants however the quality obtained was unsatisfactory for the market and this resulted in very high production costs.

The union was able to negotiate the recovery of the processing plant thanks to the new owners and started the process again in August 2013. In this way it was possible to fulfil the contracts and sell fiber. In late 2013 Coopecan acquired machinery for the processing of alpaca fiber thanks to a loan of USD 530,000 granted by Oikocredit. This cooperative processing ensures uninterrupted quality of the product offered and the continuity of its sales.

Another activity that has been important in this period was the election of a president from within the cooperative. To this end 10 representatives of organizations were trained in leadership, communication and finance. After making the corresponding assessments a new president was elected who showed the best skills and attitudes for this position. The leaders were also trained on issues of financial management so that members have greater understanding of the financial statements documents presented by the cooperative. There has been a proper transfer of knowledge, participation in the General Assembly when presenting the financial statements and making proper communication between members.

Marketing improved, the number of international clients increased since 2012 from 4 to 7 while national there are 2 clients at the end of 2013. Sales has increased by 7%. In the analysis of these figures it must be taken into account that the processing plant has not been available the whole period, while the industrial processing resumed in August. This meant that 6 contracts were only fulfilled in 2014.