Kenya’s B2B agri-tech startup Taimba will be looking to further disrupt its sector as it has landed EUR250,000 (US$277,000) in funding through a partnership with Enviu and the DOEN Foundation.

‘‘We believe that the co-operation between Taimba and Enviu is an advantage,” said Freija Vermeer from Stichting DOEN. 

Here Is The Deal 

• Taimba’s EUR250,000 (US$277,000) funding, which comes as a mixture of equity and grant financing, will enable the startup to integrate cold logistics within its value chain, expand its product offering, optimise its operations and significantly grow its market.
• The startups secured US$100,000 funding from Gray Matters Capital’s coLABS last year, at the same time as it agreed a partnership with Enviu, financially supported by the DOEN Foundation, that it is only now formally announcing.

Why The Investors Invested

With the contribution of the Dutch Charity Lotteries, the DOEN Foundation, one of the investors in Taimba supports over 200 initiatives annually, through subsidies, equity investments, and loans.

‘‘We support both large and small initiatives and we act from the philosophy: subsidize where necessary, provide equity investments, loans and guarantees where possible. DOEN’s role is to provide support in the very first phase in order to give initiatives a flying start, and thereby stimulate innovation. Where possible, DOEN subsequently transfers the initiatives to other parties to increase their impact,’’ the Foundation notes on its website.

What The Startup Does

• Taimba sources agricultural products directly from farmers and delivers directly to informal greengrocers, schools, hospitals and restaurants within Nairobi, removing the middlemen and shrinking the agricultural value chain. 
• It currently has over 2,000 farmers in its portfolio, and engages with 15 farmer savings and credit cooperatives (SACCOs) selling produce such as potatoes, tomatoes, cabbages and carrots on one side. On the other side, it has more than 300 customers, and it has now secured funding in order to grow into six more markets in Nairobi.
• Cold storage and transport will allow Taimba to transport and store a wider range of perishable goods and accommodate a larger lag time between harvesting and sale, leading to greater flexibility and more stable demand for farmers.

“The cold storage solution is important for Taimba to be able to scale up and to grow Taimba’s impact, so it can be an example to innovate and make impact for other companies within the food chain in the region,” said Freija Vermeer 

• Enviu, through its Rechain programme in which it links multiple business interventions to achieve a zero food-loss value chain in East Africa, is supporting Taimba in this ambitious growth phase.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer.
He could be contacted at udohrapulu@gmail.com