Innovative Solutions

Learn from other companies successfully working with smallholder farmers.

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Solving quality seeds shortages through farmer-led seed multiplication

Farmer-led seed multiplication is a process whereby farmers use certified seeds on their farm to produce clean seeds that can be used by other farmers as alternatives to the often unaffordable and unavailable certified seeds. The production of clean seeds by farmers is done following guidelines from farmer training. Clean seeds can be re-used a limited number of times (1-3) following good agricultural practices (GAP), making them affordable while maintaining their quality.

Mobile Aggregation Center (MAC): An aggregation and service solution in smallholder agriculture

Mobile Aggregation Centres (MACs) emerged as a flexible, transparent, and cost-efficient solution for Smart Logistics Services to source from scattered smallholder farmers. These aggregation and service centres, installable in different locations, addressed the company’s high aggregation costs and simultaneously improved farmers access to a nearby market and post-harvest services.

Integrated end-to-end traceability and ai credit scoring to unlock access to finance

End-to-end traceability and AI credit scoring: Field agents, equipped with fingerprint
scanners, smartphone with a pre-installed in-house developed app, and more, create a complete,
verifiable and traceable profile of farm(er)s and produce. Data is stored in the app allowing
digitization, aggregation and manipulation. Coupled with a proprietary AI credit scoring algorithm,
the data is leveraged to predict non-performing loans (NPL) with very high accuracy. With scale
and over time, the predictors of NPLs can be better understood.

Innovative Models for Market Transformation

Smallholder agriculture markets are typically beset by a series of challenges, many of which are systemic by nature – a situation that has only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. IDH Farmfit is established to support the transformation of markets so that they are vibrant, inclusive, and sustainable.

ECOM offer tailored services through a Sustainable Management Services (SMS) that farmers are willing to pay for.

This model provides a range of services to smallholders and charges them service fees. The model aims to become financially self-sufficient.

Anatrans trains and gradually remits service delivery and sourcing responsibilities to well-performing farmer groups to reduce cashew-sourcing costs.

The model works by segmenting producer organizations (POs), building their capacity, and incentivizing and empowering them to take on a bigger role in managing the supply chain including a growing role in the SDM.

Exportadora Café California packages financial instruments for increased long-term yield and farmer profitability.

ECC incorporated multiple financial instruments in the package to make renovation and professionalization attractive to farmers.

Syngenta establishes key partnerships to serve 100,000 smallholders in Kenya enabling them to purchase input packages.

In this partnership-based SDM, farmers receive a full range of services that include training, finance (loans), crop insurance, access to a package consisting of hybrid seeds, fertilizers, and crop protection, and market linkages.

Allied Atlantic Distilleries Ltd eliminate side-selling and increases the quantity and quality of cassava through block farming.

A total of 2,000 hectares was leased to smallholders under a Block Farming Program. Professional mechanization services were offered to farmers, increasing the quantity and quality of cassava produced.

Jungle Nuts implements a farmer-clustering model and farmer-management system to source more, traceable high-quality macadamias.

Individual outgrower farmers scattered in seven different regions of Kenya are organized into clusters to help create a more effective and efficient engagement service-delivery mechanism.