Organic Processing Vo1.7 #2 - March/April 2010

this case, the client company’s survival hinged on having the money match the mission because restructuring the loan required RSF to temporarily put aside its financial interest. If lenders don’t have that social mission behind them they won’t be as likely to take that risk, Sprague adds.

Finding the right partners, though, can be like most parts of the organic system—it will take time, care, and plenty of due diligence. Nystrom observes that mission-driven financing is gaining ground in the financial world, but still only a very small percentage of venture capital firms—maybe five percent—are focused on mission, and even fewer sources of debt financing are mission-focused.

That fits Ahmed Rahim’s experi-
ence. The CEO and cofounder of
Numi Tea, one of the largest im-
porters of organic and fair trade pre-
mium teas to the United States, met
with dozens of different investors and institutions to find the right fi-
nancial partners for his business. “In general, mission-driven money
isn’t out there that much,” he says.

Mission-Driven Debt Financing

One source of mission-based debt financing is the New Resource Bank, located in San Francisco. New Resource Bank provides all the banking services a business or individual would expect, but specializes in working with clean technology, green building, community development and sustainable companies, including organic farming and

with you at the bench.
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