According to farmersreviewafrica.com, East Africa Foods (EAF) has raised USD 40 million to scale physical and digital infrastructure across Africa’s food supply chain, targeting a one-third reduction in post-harvest food loss within its network.
Capital Raise and Strategic Expansion
The USD 26 million Series B equity round was led by the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) through InfraCo, with co-investment from Oikocredit and FMO—the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank. Historic shareholders ARAF, Goodwell, Africa Eats, and FINCA reinvested, while debt funding came from the Schmidt Family Foundation. EKTA Partners served as exclusive financial advisor. The capital will fund expansion of processing, storage, logistics capacity, and the company’s proprietary digital platform—alongside entry into new markets beyond Kenya and Tanzania.
EAF aims to reach 100,000 smallholder farmers over the next few years, with 45% of them women. Its current network already serves more than 28,000 registered smallholder farmers and supplies over 10,000 urban retailers with produce under brands including Onja and Golden Banana.
According to the source, up to 40% of food produced in Kenya and Tanzania is lost before reaching consumers—not in fields, but during aggregation, grading, storage, and transport. EAF’s integrated model directly addresses this gap, and today cuts loss by a third across its own operations.
Climate-Resilient Infrastructure and Farmer Impact
Alongside physical infrastructure, EAF will expand training in climate-smart production methods and scale its Tanzania-built digital systems connecting farmers, branches, and retailers. These systems are designed for deployment across new markets and aim to deliver higher and more predictable incomes for smallholder farmers while improving quality control, traceability, and product availability for urban retailers.
Elia Timotheo, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of East Africa Foods, said:
“A third of what our farmers grow never reaches anyone’s table. That is not a farming problem: it is an infrastructure problem, and it is solvable. For the past three years we have been building the layer this market is missing: the sourcing network, the fleet, the storage, and the technology that sit between a smallholder farm and an urban shelf. This investment enables us to further improve and scale this physical and digital infrastructure. We would like to thank our investors for their support in scaling this vital infrastructure.” — Elia Timotheo, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of East Africa Foods
Claire Jarratt, PIDG Head of Investment Management for InfraCo, added:
“EAF’s offering aligns well with PIDG’s mandate to deliver inclusive, climate-resilient growth across the countries in which we operate. Strengthening EAF’s presence in Tanzania, and expanding its efficient, data-driven business into Kenya, will enable the company to mobilise future finance into this vital sector, underpinning improved food security across the region.” — Claire Jarratt, PIDG Head of Investment Management for InfraCo
Investor Rationale and Systemic Impact
Samuel Kibiri, Senior Equity Officer at Oikocredit, emphasized alignment with long-term food system resilience:
“At Oikocredit, we believe that building climate-resilient food systems requires investment in the infrastructure that connects farmers to markets efficiently and sustainably. EAF’s integrated aggregation, storage, processing, and distribution platform helps reduce food loss across the value chain, strengthen food security for growing urban populations, and improve the resilience and incomes of smallholder farmers.” — Samuel Kibiri, Senior Equity Officer at Oikocredit
Peter Byrde, Director Private Equity at FMO, noted the model’s replicability:
“Through our partnership with East Africa Foods, we have seen how investments in logistics, storage, processing, and digital solutions can reduce food loss, improve market access, and increase income opportunities for smallholder farmers. That’s why FMO is pleased to support EAF’s next phase of growth as it expands critical supply chain infrastructure across the region, helping to build a more efficient, resilient, and inclusive food system.” — Peter Byrde, Director Private Equity at FMO
The source cites two supporting reports: Mbeche et al. (2025) on food loss in Kenyan value chains, and Rutta (2024) on postharvest loss reduction policy in Tanzania—both underscoring the regional urgency and institutional backing for EAF’s approach.
Source: farmersreviewafrica.com
Compiled from international media by the SCI.AI editorial team.
