The coronavirus pandemic brings more than a healthcare crisis to Africa, it brings disruptions to the food supply chain that will likely cause widespread hunger and starvation.
The food system is already far from ideal, with (at least) 40% of that food never being eaten due to post-harvest losses (Rockefeller Foundation studies).
Adding to these issues are the friction of closed borders, lockdowns, and lost revenues from the best paying customers: hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, and safaris.
Pre-pandemic, there was far too much friction in the early-stage financial markets to fund the food/ag supply chain. Now these food companies are essential services and the only chance to prevent widespread hunger.
A solution for all these issues is Africa Eats, a holding company with a diverse set of African food/ag companies supporting hundreds of thousands of smallholder farmers, feeding millions of Africans.
An agile holding company that can efficiently put capital to work to keep the food supply running.
Africa Eats does not try solving this problem from scratch, but instead begins with 30 fledglings (graduates) of Fledge. 30 young, for-profit, growing companies chosen from thousands as most likely to succeed, with impact embedded in their product or service, and who have all received two months of intense training, capital, and follow-on support. 30 companies which in 2019 earned over $6.5 million in aggregate revenues and which worked directly with over 100,000 smallholder farmers.
Our 501(c)3 partner, Realize Impact, is investing in Africa Eats to mitigate as much of the pandemic-induced hunger crisis as possible and post-pandemic to help Africa feed itself, including the second billion Africans, expected to be born before 2040.
More details on the Africa Eats website.
Contact us Realize Impact for more information or if you are interested in donating or co-investing.
[…] Fledge, which runs around ten impact accelerators across the world, created Africa Eats about a year ago, a holding company with 27 agriculture and food-focused Africa-based graduates of the networks’ programs. The objective is to provide on-the-ground entrepreneurs with a deep grasp of how to best alleviate hunger and poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa. Since then, the firm has raised over $2 million, and the portfolio companies are doing well despite the epidemic. […]