IDH
IDH is a Netherlands-based non-profit sustainable trade initiative that convenes businesses, governments, investors, and communities to transform global commodity supply chains across cocoa, coffee, palm oil, apparel, and other sectors, operating through four service pillars anchored by the IDH Farmfit Fund.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersUtrecht, Netherlands
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What IDH does
IDH (the Sustainable Trade Initiative), founded in 2008 and headquartered in Utrecht, Netherlands, is a non-profit convening organization that brings together businesses, governments, investors, and civil society to transform global commodity markets toward sustainability. It operates through a multi-stakeholder coalition model organized around four impact agendas — Living Income, Decent Work and Wages, Gender Equality, and Climate and Nature — applied across ten commodity sectors including cocoa, coffee, palm oil, cotton, spices, apparel, and aquaculture. Rather than selling a unified software product, IDH delivers its work through four service pillars: convening of industry initiatives, investment solutions (anchored by the IDH Farmfit Fund), beyond-compliance advisory, and sustainable procurement guidance.
The organization runs a network of more than 400 staff across offices in 23+ countries spanning Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America, with regional hubs in locations such as Nairobi, Accra, Abidjan, Addis Ababa, Jakarta, Hanoi, Bengaluru, São Paulo, and Bogotá. Its technology footprint is light: IDH does not own proprietary AI or software products but supports third-party digital agriculture platforms such as GSMA AgriTech's Digital Agriculture Maps and partners with agritech firms (e.g., Apollo Agriculture, Kaleidofin) that provide digital services to smallholders. The IDH Farmfit Fund functions as the organization's primary financial instrument, deploying blended debt (e.g., KSh 276 million local-currency facility to Apollo Agriculture) to de-risk agricultural finance.
IDH's revenue model is grant- and donor-driven rather than commercial. The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) are core institutional donors, supplemented by other strategic donors and program-specific grants (e.g., Convergence's Asia Natural Capital Design Funding Window). IDH generates no product pricing; its "customers" are a mix of donor governments, corporate partners in commodity supply chains, investors, and smallholder farming communities reached through its programs. There is no equity ownership, no public listing, and no venture or private equity funding indicated in the source data.
IDH firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- IDH
- Legal name
- IDH
- Website
- https://idhsustainabletrade.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- IDH is a Netherlands-based non-profit sustainable trade initiative that convenes businesses, governments, investors, and communities to transform global commodity supply chains across cocoa, coffee, palm oil, apparel, and other sectors, operating through four service pillars anchored by the IDH Farmfit Fund.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where IDH is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Utrecht
- HQ country
- Netherlands
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
IDH business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Government and Institutional Donor Funding: IDH is funded by government donors including the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), as well as numerous other strategic donors who support their programs and interventions worldwide.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
IDH product offering
Product offeringCore offering
IDH is a non-profit convening organization that brings together businesses, governments, investors, and communities to transform markets through sustainable trade. It delivers four service pillars — Convening, Investment Solutions (including the IDH Farmfit Fund), Beyond Compliance advisory, and Sustainable Procurement guidance — focused on agricultural value chains such as Cocoa, Coffee, Palm Oil, Spices, Apparel, and Bananas, with impact agendas spanning Living Income, Decent Work and Wages, Gender Equality, and Climate and Nature.
Product overview
IDH (The Sustainable Trade Initiative) is a convening organization that brings together businesses, governments, investors, and communities to transform markets for sustainability. Rather than a unified software product, IDH operates as a multi-faceted initiative offering convening services, investment solutions (including the IDH Farmfit Fund for smallholder finance), beyond-compliance advisory, and sustainable procurement guidance. The organization focuses on specific agricultural sectors (Apparel, Bananas, Cocoa, Coffee, Cotton, Flowers, Fruit and Vegetables, Palm Oil, Spices, Vanilla) and drives impact agendas around Living Income, Decent Work and Wages, Gender Equality, Climate and Nature, and Food Systems Transformation. IDH produces research, reports, and tools such as the IDH Farmfit Fund for smallholder financing and collaborates with partners on blended finance solutions.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- IDH Convening
- IDH Investment Solutions
- IDH Beyond Compliance
- IDH Procurement
- IDH Farmfit Fund
- IDH Annual Reports
Quantifiable outcome
- 42% income improvement for farmers engaged in ITC's spices program over 10 years (studied by IDH)
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use IDH
Customer profileSegments5 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
IDH technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
IDH partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and supporting.
- Global Coffee PlatformcoreCommissioned 'The Grounds for Sharing' report together with IDH and Solidaridad to examine value distribution along coffee supply chains from Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia, and Vietnam to German retail consumers.
- SolidaridadcoreCivil society organization co-commissioning the coffee sector value distribution study with Global Coffee Platform and IDH.
- Apollo AgriculturemajorEast African agritech company receiving financing from IDH Farmfit Fund to provide seeds and fertilizer on credit to smallholder farmers in Kenya.
- KaleidofinsupportingFinancial services provider providing credit scoring services to de-risk the Apollo Agriculture venture financed by IDH Farmfit Fund.
- GSMA AgriTechmajorPartnership to develop the Digital Agriculture Maps (DAMs) report analyzing the digital agriculture landscape for Low and Middle-Income Countries.
- Alune AquamajorAquaculture specialist collaborating with ADM Capital Group and IDH on the Asia Aquaculture Facility using a blended finance revenue-based financing model.
- Rainforest AlliancemajorSustainability organization supported by IDH in efforts to promote integrated landscape management (ILM) in cocoa and coffee sectors in Ghana and Vietnam.
- Nigeria Cassava Processing SectormajorIDH Block Farming Model successfully implemented to improve feedstock supply reliability for cassava processing factories in Nigeria.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
IDH competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Rainforest Alliance: Rainforest Alliance is a global sustainability certification and convening organization working across cocoa, coffee, tea, and forestry supply chains — directly comparable to IDH's sector scope and multi-stakeholder approach. Already a strategic partner of IDH (collaborating on integrated landscape management in Ghana and Vietnam).
- Solidaridad: Solidaridad is an international civil society organization convening producers, companies, and governments to drive sustainable supply chains in agriculture. Directly comparable to IDH's convening model across shared commodities (coffee, cocoa, palm oil) and an existing IDH co-partner.
- Fairtrade International: Fairtrade operates a global certification and producer-support system across many of the same commodities as IDH (cocoa, coffee, bananas, cotton) and convenes retailers, producers, and governments to set living-income standards. Closely overlaps with IDH's Living Income and Decent Work impact agendas.
- Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO): RSPO is a multi-stakeholder standard-setting and certification body for sustainable palm oil — directly comparable to IDH's palm oil sector work. Both organizations convene producers, traders, NGOs, and financiers to transform a tropical commodity supply chain.
- Global Coffee Platform: Global Coffee Platform convenes coffee producers, industry, and civil society to improve sustainability in coffee supply chains — directly comparable to IDH's coffee sector convening work. Already an IDH co-partner on the 'Grounds for Sharing' value-distribution study.
- Bonsucro: Bonsucro is a multi-stakeholder sustainability platform for sugarcane with similar convening-plus-standard-setting structure to IDH. Comparable in operating model and in targeting a single tropical commodity supply chain.
- Better Cotton Initiative: Better Cotton is the world's largest cotton sustainability standard, convening producers, brands, and retailers — directly comparable to IDH's apparel and cotton sector work in both operating model and commodity focus.
Emerging players
- ISEAL Alliance: ISEAL is the global membership association for credible sustainability standards — overlapping with IDH's role in defining what good sustainability practice looks like across commodities. Not a direct competitor but a peer in shaping the sustainability standards ecosystem.
- Mercy Corps Ventures: Mercy Corps operates agri-food and smallholder finance programs across emerging markets with blended-finance vehicles, comparable to IDH Farmfit Fund and IDH's smallholder farmer focus. Overlapping in target geographies (Kenya, Indonesia, Vietnam) and smallholder finance thesis.
Broad incumbents
- WWF International: WWF is a much larger, broader conservation organization that also convenes corporates on sustainable commodity supply chains (palm oil, soy, beef, seafood) and shapes sector governance. Comparable in convening capability but with a significantly wider mandate spanning conservation beyond agriculture.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
IDH social profiles
Digital presenceIDH financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
IDH leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
IDH funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
IDH M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments12 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about IDH
What does IDH do?
IDH is a non-profit convening organization that brings together businesses, governments, investors, and communities to transform markets through sustainable trade. It delivers four service pillars — Convening, Investment Solutions (including the IDH Farmfit Fund), Beyond Compliance advisory, and Sustainable Procurement guidance — focused on agricultural value chains such as Cocoa, Coffee, Palm Oil, Spices, Apparel, and Bananas, with impact agendas spanning Living Income, Decent Work and Wages, Gender Equality, and Climate and Nature.
Is IDH a public or private company?
IDH is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was IDH founded?
IDH was founded in 2008. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is IDH based?
IDH is headquartered in Utrecht, Netherlands, in the Europe region.
How does IDH make money?
One revenue line is on record: government and Institutional Donor Funding.
Who are IDH's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Rainforest Alliance, Solidaridad, Fairtrade International, Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), Global Coffee Platform, Bonsucro and Better Cotton Initiative. Emerging players are ISEAL Alliance and Mercy Corps Ventures. WWF International is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does IDH have an API?
No public API is recorded for IDH.