Unilever NL : “Techniques to help people grow their way out of poverty exist”

We've had to recognise and admit failure along the way. We started out trying to change the crops farmers grew but that didn't work. We realised we had to focus on giving farmers a crop they were used to, but also affordable and easy to grow. Biofortified corn was the answer.

One of my proudest moments so far was our biofortified corn seed's official launch in May this year. It meant that our product would be available for all agro-stores in Guatemala to sell, giving more farmers access to biofortified corn seed and improving nutrition for even more families and communities across the country.

My motivation comes from a deep desire to turn possibility into reality. Nothing makes me feel more alive than working with passionate people to solve a hard problem - and I love how infectious that passion and purpose can be, especially when you know you have something to offer the world that matters and will make a difference.

We came into the Unilever Young Entrepreneurs Awards nearly five years ago as a small grassroots NGO. The mentoring we received, along with exposure to other social entrepreneurs, helped us identify how to improve our model. Now we have 1% of Guatemala's corn seed market and plan to expand to 3-4% and impact hundreds of thousands of people next year.

We currently only sell our biofortified corn seed in Guatemala, but we've got plans to grow. We hope to expand our work to other corn-dependent and undernourished countries - first to other parts of Central America, then to countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Whether you work in the private sector or for a non-profit, I believe we all have an obligation to make a difference. We should think big and look at how to make systemic and impactful changes.