“It is a true pleasure to announce that the Kavli Trust’s support to good causes once again hit a new record,” says Inger Elise Iversen, the Kavli Trust’s CEO.
This year’s total is a substantial hike from last year’s record of NOK 82 million.
From spreadable cheese to UN sustainability goals
These delightful figures reflect a record-high turnover in the Kavli Trust’s businesses over the past years. As the sole owner of strong Kavli Group brands such as St. Helen’s Farm, Primula, and Druvan, the Kavli Trust donates to good causes every krone that isn’t reinvested.
As a rule, half of all profits is reinvested into Kavli businesses, while the other half goes to the Kavli Trust.
The Kavli Trust owns brands appearing on breakfast tables through decades, such as Primula soft cheese, goat’s milk products from St Helen’s Farm, milk and Skyr from Q-meieriene, and the Kavli caviar and spreadable cheeses. As people buy more of these products than ever, the Kavli Trust can donate more than ever.
CEO Inger Elise Iversen and chair Aksel Mjøs are thrilled that the Kavli Trust was able to donate NOK 131 million this year to humanitarian work, research, and culture. Photo: Hanne Eide Andersen/The Kavli Trust
Humanitarian work, research, and culture
The 131 million kroner are spread across projects within the Kavli Trust’s three core areas: humanitarian work, research, and culture. 70 per cent of the funding go to projects in the Kavli group’s four countries of production, which in addition to Norway are Sweden, Finland and Great Britain. The remaining 30 per cent go to education projects in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.
CEO Inger Elise Iversen emphasises that the Kavli Trust’s goal isn’t quantity, but quality:
“We exist for others. Our mission is to give back to society in the most beneficial manner. We are her to give, but we don’t give just for the sake of giving,” Iversen says.
“There’s little use in donating millions unless those millions are distributed wisely. Our most important job is to find the projects that best harmonise with our statutes, values and strategies,” Iversen adds.
The Kavli Trust supports projects that show efficiency and a strong sense of purpose, that fill critical needs, are run with skill, and provide measurable results. The projects must contribute to one or more of the UN sustainability goals for education, economic growth, equality and health.
“We want the causes we support to create ripples of change – lasting change – for individuals and society at large,” Iversen says.
Along with her colleagues in the Kavli Group, Iversen feels enthusiastic about a new year and new milestones. The goal is to donate a billion Norwegian kroner – that’s £100 million! – by 2025.
Thanks to a growing turnover from the various Kavli Group businesses, profits donated to good causes have grown steadily over the past few years.
A selection of the projects supported by the Kavli Trust this year:
Gjør noe med det-prosjektet/Young Enterprise, Norway
Church SOS
Kirkens Bymisjon
Fargespill Oslo
Göteborgs Stadsmission
Matsentralene in Rogaland, Vestfold-Telemark and Tromsø
Programme on Health Research
Support for ME research at Haukeland university hospital
Bergen four-day treatment (B4DT)
Young, digital entrepreneurs in Myanmar
Streetlight Schools, Jeppe Park in Johannesburg
Human Practice Foundations in Nepal
Foreningen Ung Inkludering
FACTS
• The Kavli Trust owns the Kavli Group, a collection of various food production companies in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Great Britain.
• Any profit that isn’t reinvested goes to the Kavli Trust, which in turn donates the funds to humanitarian work, research, and culture.
• 70 per cent of all donations go to projects in the four countries where the Kavli Group businesses operate. 30 per cent go to projects in developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast- and South Asia.
• The donations have increased steadily in the past ten years. In 2017, donations reached a total of NOK 82 million. This year, the Kavli Trust donated a record-high NOK 131 million.
• The Kavli Group’s goal is to create values so that the Kavli Trust kan donate one billion Norwegian kroner between 2018–2025.
FeriePULSE is a low-threshold holiday programme arranged by the Norwegian Band Federation (Norges Musikkorps Forbund). Photo: Hanne Andersen/Kavlifondet
The Swedish project My Big Day (Min stora dag) creates memorable moments for seriously ill children and their families. Photo: Min stora dag
The city mission of Gothenburg, Sweden, is opening a food redistribution centre with support from the Kavli Trust. Photo: Göteborgs Stadsmission
In Ethiopia, Huka Abashire has opened a shop and mobile charging service with support from StS EDA and the Kavli Trust. Photo: StS EDA
This year’s Norwegian national telethon beneficiary, the Church City Mission, received NOK 500.000 from the Kavli Trust. Photo: Kirkens Bymisjon Bergen
In cooperation with AKTIV Against Cancer, the Kavli Trust funds research into exercise as cancer treatment. Photo: Hanne Andersen/The Kavli Trust
Every year, young musical talents get a chance to play with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra in the beautiful concert hall Grieghallen. The Kavli Trust has supported the programme for over a decade. The photo depicts our chair Aksel Mjøs handing out flowers and stipends to young talents after this year’s concert. Photo: Helge Skodvin
The top photo collage, from left: Fargespill Oslo, Norway; our colleague Ragna in the Kavli factory in Bergen, Norway; My Big Day in Sweden; the food bank in Oslo and Trondheim, Norway; Streetlight Schools Jeppe Park in South Africa; The Church City Mission (Photo: Torstein Ihle), Norway; Streetlight Schools Jeppe Park; Mortensnes nursing home, Norway; Fargespill Oslo.