This learning paper was developed by the Mobilising Finance for Forests (MFF) program — a blended finance initiative funded by the UK government and the government of the Netherlands — to explore how capital can be more effectively mobilized to support the transition to deforestation-free agricultural supply chains. Established by the UK and FMO in 2021 and joined by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2024, MFF aims to catalyze private investment into business models that reduce deforestation across the tropical belt.
This paper was created through MFF’s Learning, Convening, and Influencing Platform (LCIP), which facilitates crossstakeholder knowledge exchange and builds on examples of investable, forest-positive solutions. Informed by a wide range of stakeholder interviews — including development finance institutions, commercial investors, NGOs, philanthropic actors, funds, and technical assistance providers — the paper offers practical guidance for aligning capital with deforestation-free outcomes. It is intended primarily for public and private investors, as well as corporates operating in high-deforestation-risk supply chains.
It addresses three core questions:
- Which agriculture supply chain segments face the most urgent capital gaps to prevent deforestation?
- What are the key financial and structural barriers inhibiting investment?
- Which financial instruments or investment structures can help to prevent deforestation at scale?
The analysis focuses on forest-risk commodity supply chains such as cocoa and soybean, and outlines actionable strategies for deploying capital more effectively across upstream, midstream, and enabling environments. The findings will serve as the foundation for a technical convening of public and private sector actors to co-develop solutions and partnerships that accelerate systemic change in forest-risk supply chains.
