About

Elias Mufarech

Early-stage investor. I meet founders every day, and Guano is where my notes settle.

Guano and Peru

1. For centuriesGuanay cormorants, Peruvian pelicans and Peruvian boobies nest on Peru’s coastal islands, leaving a new layer of droppings every season.
2. 1840Peru starts shipping guano from the Chincha Islands to farms in Britain, France and the United States, where it is prized as fertilizer.
3. 1857 and 1869Guano peaks at 83% of the Peruvian state’s revenue. Across the boom it averages more than half.
4. 1874Mined faster than the birds could replace it, the Chincha deposits are mostly gone.
5. TodayThe islands are a protected reserve. Crews harvest by hand, one island at a time, so the colonies keep producing. Most of it goes to small Peruvian farmers.

Guano takes its name, and its lesson, from those islands: a deposit keeps its value only if you keep adding to it.

Sources: Wikipedia, Encyclopedia.com, Revista de Historia Económica, The Washington Post, Audubon