Olam International : Creating strong and thriving communities

At Rusmolco, we care deeply about the communities that lie at the heart of our operations. Without them, we wouldn't be able to tend to our herd or run our farms. But in the 1990s many Russians moved to the cities for work, leaving some of these rural communities behind. We've been working hard to change that. By bringing city level facilities to the villages that surround our milking farms, we're making these rural communities prosperous places where people want to live and work.

One way we do that is by helping to build critical infrastructure like roads, housing and energy supply networks. For example, in areas close to our farms in Arshinovka, Narovchat and Serdobsk, we have and will continue to partner with local authorities in building new homes for our employees. We have already helped to construct over 50 homes for our staff, who will eventually become owners under the government housing scheme, as well as much-needed libraries, kindergartens and community cafes.

We also support a range of community engagement programmes which are making a difference to people across the Penza area, especially those which provide support to the next generation. We provide ongoing support to several local orphanages across the region, a cause which is especially close to our heart. That involves support to children starting their school year, support to veterans in our communities, working with our employees to organise excursions for the children, and donating computers to support their education.

We are doing our part to preserve local cultures and traditions too. In the town of Narovchat, we have helped to renovate several culturally important sites linked to literary giant, Alexander Kuprin, who was local to the area and celebrated the 150th anniversary of his birth by helping to organise a literary festival dedicated to the writer.