How Peruvian communities benefit from wild moss

In an impressive region in the Andes, 3’200 meters above sea level, inhabitants live and work in rural communities. The Peruvian highlands are among the country's poorest areas, far from any larger cities and steady income opportunities. Most people are smallholder farmers who grow crops to meet their families' needs, with little or no surplus. Cultivating the land is extremely difficult, and the income generated from the vegetable harvest is low, irregular, and unpredictable.

Around a decade ago, these communities learned about sphagnum moss, a wild-growing plant with unique benefits. It is a natural substrate with a high level of moisture retention, whose properties are considered as the gold standard in orchid cultivation. It is likewise used in berry and hydroponic plant production, which both require high humidity. Due to its antibacterial properties, it is ideal for organic crop cultivation, given that it allows for excellent growth without chemical inputs. The use of moss has also become quite common for the construction of environmentally friendly vertical gardens and green roofs, since it is a natural thermal insulator and purifier of surrounding habitats.

In Peru, sphagnum moss only grows in the Andes. However, the rural highland communities were unaware of the benefits of this wild plant and thus did not pay attention to it. This changed in 2010 when impact entrepreneur Marco Piñatelli, the founder of Inka Moss, reached out to the smallholder farmers. He outlined the qualities of sphagnum moss and convinced them to harvest this valuable plant to make it an additional income source in the previously harvest-free months.

Inka Moss trained the harvesters in sustainable practices. For example, they were told to only take the upper parts of the moss and not to pull out the roots in order to keep the plant alive; some moss fibers must be preserved to allow for further growth and dissemination to new places. Afterwards, patience is required, since the moss needs sufficient time to grow back, so that the fibers are long enough to be sellable. Another positive aspect of sphagnum moss’s new fame is the preservation of nature. Since its advantages are known to the local communities, the land is conserved and not burned to cultivate fields.

Here is how the agricultural value chain works: High up in the Andean mountains, harvesters from rural communities collect the wet moss, put it in bags, and bring it back to the village. Then, they load the bags into a cargo truck owned by a trusted member of the community, who transports and drops them off at a processing plant. Plant workers subsequently spread the moss on drying beds and sort through it to remove impurities. On a sunny day, the moss dries within less than four hours. Once dried, it is transferred to a vibrating machine to clear away pieces that are too small to sell and to remove any uncaptured excess debris, keeping only strong, resilient moss strands for sale. The moss is then compressed, packaged, and labeled for international sale.

Inka Moss signs agreements with each community guaranteeing that they will purchase the product at a fair price. The average increase in smallholder farmers’ income is 20%–35%, depending on the quantity of moss that is harvested in the respective community. A bit more than half of the harvesters are women, which reflects Inka Moss’s commitment to empowering women and ensuring them fair and equitable participation. With higher and more stable incomes, the smallholders' quality of life has increased, and often, the extra revenue pays for their children's school or university fees. Another upside: people do not need to abandon their land and culture, since they can earn a living at home that makes a real difference in their lives.

Not only do individual harvesters benefit from the extra income, but so do the communities where they live. A certification from the Ministry of Forestry is a prerequisite for harvesting moss. Inka Moss supports the highland communities in securing the documents they need to officially register and obtain the certificate that allows them to harvest moss. In addition, once these communities are formally registered, they gain access to governmental funds. Moreover, the location of these communities is so remote that it is incredibly challenging to reach them. Inka Moss thus builds small paths and roads to facilitate access to these areas, thereby enabling the moss pickup and transport of goods in general. Since part of the proceeds from moss harvesting goes towards communal funds, these highland communities have seen further improvements in their infrastructure, upgrades in schools and public spaces, and refinements in the water and sewage systems.

Marco: In 2007, I met Anton Becker, a Dutch pioneer in the moss industry who discovered the existence of sphagnum moss during his travels to Cusco. At the same time, my interest in becoming an entrepreneur and working with communities was growing. I evaluated multiple products but was immediately intrigued by sphagnum moss. I thus conducted further intensive research and developed a business plan that led to the inception of Inka Moss in 2010. I just knew that I had found the ideal product, one with a sustainable global demand and immense potential for economic success that would have a tangible social impact on Andean communities.

Inka Moss, founded in 2010 by Marco Piñatelli, is dedicated to processing and exporting sphagnum moss. They collaborate with low-income communities in remote regions of the Andes and generate work, stable incomes, and higher revenues for harvesters by including them as the main link in the value chain of a previously unused natural resource.

Since elea’s initial investment in 2018, Inka Moss has become profitable and has grown by more than 20% year-over-year despite numerous challenges, such as the pandemic and an ongoing political crisis. Their impact has increased from collaborating with 545 harvesters to 1’333. Inka Moss has since expanded to Huánuco, where they have built an additional processing plant and employ 11 plant workers.

Author: Romy Sauer, Communications Specialist at elea Foundation for Ethics in Globalization