Spicing Up Social Impact:

How Truly Turmeric and Silk Grass Farms Are Changing Agriculture and Lives in Belize

In 2014, Ugandan refugee Umeeda Switlo, a marine biologist, departed her new home in Canada for a volunteer trip in Belize. While touring the abundant Toledo District, Umeeda came upon fresh turmeric root: “the biggest she had ever seen,” says her daughter and business partner, Nareena Switlo. Inspired by the local produce, Umeeda used one of her mother’s recipes to create a turmeric paste. That paste became the launchpad of an international business that is part of a developing shift in Belize’s agriculture industry.

With flavorful products and impactful business practices, Truly Turmeric aims to make a positive difference in people’s lives, prioritizing sustainable local sourcing in Belize by creating relationships with small-scale growers and providing education about regenerative agriculture practices. Their approach found a perfect match in Silk Grass Farms, which supplies coconut oil and lime juice for Truly Turmeric products. Nareena says the collaboration expands beyond the business to influence people and culture, and is just one of the hundreds of connections Truly Turmeric has fostered to help bolster health and prosperity in Belize.

“It’s important for like-minded businesses to collaborate,” Nareena says. “Good owners treating their people fairly trickles down into how those people treat their customers and everybody around.”

Setting High Standards for Sustainability and Social Impact

Although neither Umeeda nor Nareena (an anthropologist) had experience in the food industry, in 2016 they established Naledo, the parent company of Truly Turmeric. Since then the company has gained international traction, with products sold in over 1,000 stores in Canada, on Amazon, and in the UK. 

Since the start, the company has worked to maintain high standards in its supply chain. Soon after launching the company, seeking a local supplier of quality coconut oil that prioritized food safety, they connected with Silk Grass Farms. “The ownership is so invested in not only making good products safely but in vastly improving every aspect of Belize that they touch,” Nareena says. “It’s rare in food manufacturing to be proud of your suppliers and know exactly how they're doing things because they're transparent and you can champion and cheer them along. They’re not just coming here to take, they’re giving wholeheartedly.”

It’s a way of doing business that’s reflected in both companies’ status as Certified B Corporations, verified for their social and environmental impact by a third-party assessment. Like Silk Grass Farms, Truly Turmeric provides development opportunities for employees and growers, focusing on inclusion and mentorship.

“We’re excited to partner with a fellow B-Corp company that, like us, is creating an impact by the way they treat people and the environment,” says Tyeshia Casimiro, Silk Grass Farms Chief of Staff. “We are all working together to uphold the highest standards of social and environmental responsibility while uplifting the local community and making a name for Belize.”

In addition to Silk Grass Farms’ coconut oil and lime juice, Truly Turmeric products are made with turmeric grown in the wild by over 300 small-scale growers in Belize’s Toledo District. “We also try to connect our growers with grants and funding for farm equipment and other things that they might need,” she says. 

Beyond the business relationship with growers, Truly Turmeric provides education about the impact of pesticides and herbicides on human and animal health. “We did an education series in communities to show how when you spray here, this is how long it actually takes to go away, and this is what can happen when it runs into your family’s yard,” Nareena says. “There’s a lot of education and mentorship around our company and how we interact with people.”

With a nod to Umeeda’s original visit to Belize — a trip organized by a global organization creating economic opportunities for marginalized groups — Truly Turmeric supports youth employment to help younger people gain skills and professional experience that can help them long-term. The company also ensures fair wages for growers, paying three times the fair-trade price for fresh turmeric, calculated to support livable incomes without pricing the crop out of local markets. These ethical practices are among those that earned Umeeda a Meaningful Business 100 award in 2024.

A Collaborative Business Relationship That Builds Regional Impact

Truly Turmeric and Silk Grass Farms have fostered a close working relationship that supports efficiency and sustainability, Nareena says. The company values Silk Grass Farms’ commitment to circular economy practices, such as accepting bottle returns and collaborating on bulk packaging to reduce waste.

“We’re inspired by Silk Grass Farms' conscientiousness around building a circular economy. It’s not just Naledo — there is another company that’s changing the agro industry in Belize,” she says. “People are seeing good, local products coming to them, but also seeing the international recognition these products are getting.”

Nareena envisions a promising future for large-scale sustainable agriculture in Belize led by Silk Grass Farms and Truly Turmeric’s shared approach that incorporates ethical practices, local empowerment, and long-term environmental stewardship. “I have lofty goals to see the Toledo District become an organic region,” she says.