LocationsThe Mother Who Fought Hunger and Built a Business That Feeds Hundreds
October 23, 2025
The Mother Who Fought Hunger and Built a Business That Feeds Hundreds
In the heart of Kandahar, Jan Bibi, a 45-year-old mother of eleven, experienced four decades of hardship, before starting her own successful business, with the help of UNDP. Her journey from poverty to entrepreneurship is not just a moving story of triumph over adversity, but a message of resilience for women and children across Afghanistan.
For over 20 years, Jan Bibi struggled to feed her family. Her husband earned just $50 a month: barely enough for one meal a day for their household of 13. “There were days when we had nothing but tea,” she recalls. Her children, five sons and six daughters, grew up malnourished.
A Business Born from Necessity
In 2020, Jan Bibi took a bold step. With $5,000 borrowed from friends and relatives, she founded the Hassan Chopan Company, a small business producing affordable, nutrient-rich foods like peanut butter, nutributter, and quroot. She started with five women staff, determined to fight child malnutrition and empower other women like herself.
Her products are locally sourced and deliberately fortified to combat Afghanistan’s widespread food insecurity. According to the World Food Programme, 14.8 million Afghans face high levels of acute food insecurity. Jan’s mission was simple: make life-saving nutrition accessible to even the poorest families.
Scaling Up with EU Support
In 2025, Jan’s business received a major boost through the EU-funded Afghanistan Community Resilience Programme (ACRP), a multi-partner initiative implemented by UNDP in collaboration with FAO, IOM, and UNODC. With support from ACRP, Jan was able to double her production capacity—from 25 to 50 kilograms per day—and increase her monthly income from $2,000 to $4,000. Today, her enterprise generates an annual revenue of $100,000 and indirectly supports over 700 household members.
ACRP aims to provide alternative livelihoods for communities previously reliant on opium cultivation, promoting climate adaptation and economic resilience in Kandahar and Helmand. Jan Bibi’s enterprise is a model of how agribusinesses can drive sustainable development.
Jan’s next goal is to open retail shops in multiple provinces to expand her reach nationwide. Today, her family enjoys three nutritious meals a day—something she once thought impossible.
In May 2025, she showcased her products at the Badam Bagh Exhibition in Kabul, with all travel, accommodation, Mahram expenses, and booth fees covered by ACRP. Over four days, she sold 200 kilograms of product worth $3,000 and secured contracts in Herat, Ghazni, and Balkh, unlocking a $10,000 expansion opportunity.
Empowering Women, Sustaining Communities
The Hassan Chopan Company now supports over 500 households (300 female, 200 male) through direct and indirect employment. Of her 20 permanent staff, 17 are women, many of them heads of households. They peel and crush peanuts, mix them with milk and other ingredients, and shape them into nutritious bars. Jan sources peanuts from Helmand, supporting local farmers and creating a cycle of economic empowerment.
Simagul, 30, a member of the Hassan Chopan team, shares:
“My husband passed away, and I have two sons, 8 and 10. They were malnourished for a year. Now, I can feed them three meals a day. The nutributter we make saved them. Thank you to UNDP for supporting us.”
Economic Growth and an Alternative to Narcotics
Through the EU-funded Afghanistan Community Resilience Programme (ACRP), UNDP and partner agencies are helping farmers and entrepreneurs bring their products to market and grow their incomes. For communities across Afghanistan, this is a double victory: it offers a viable alternative to the destructive opium poppy trade and strengthens the economy by creating jobs, supporting families, and fostering long-term resilience.
For Jan Bibi, it’s more than economic opportunity: it’s a deeply personal mission shaped by years of hardship. “No child should go to bed hungry. That is my dream,” she says. Her journey from survival to leadership is a powerful example of how EU-supported initiatives can uplift individuals and transform entire communities, linking grassroots action to the global fight against hunger.