That is, to make progress, to advance. That is, things are made better. That has little to do with money. As a matter of fact, money tends to obscure the matter. Money doesn't measure how much things are made better.
Money measures how much is owed or how much is due from somebody else.
As far as whole systems are concerned, food only increases profit if people are fed by it. True profit is measured in the increased quality of life of all parties concerned. This can be looked at in terms of very specific individual actions all the way up to very large global systems. An action is inherently profitable if it makes a positive difference. Not just for the person doing it, but for the recipients of the action, and for the whole system they are part of.