Nairobi-based agri-tech startup FarmWorks has raised new equity financing from Netherlands-based impact investor Truvalu Group. While the exact amount was not disclosed, Truvalu’s average investment size typically stands at around €400,000, with room for co-investors in larger deals.
Founded in 2018 by Yi Li, FarmWorks supports over 4,000 smallholder farmers in Kenya by helping them improve agricultural practices and increase sales of staple crops such as onions and tomatoes, as well as export products like French beans and snow peas.
Li credits FarmWorks’ success to its relentless focus on cost control, essential for thriving in a market fraught with infrastructure challenges, remote communities, and climate-related risks. “We focus heavily on operational efficiency,” Li explained, highlighting that even factors like fuel consumption per truck kilometer are carefully monitored.
FarmWorks also operates drop-off centers where farmers deliver their harvested crops, which are then distributed to local markets. Farmers who own trucks can earn extra income by providing transportation services. For export goods, FarmWorks manages the production process to ensure products meet international standards.
The company initially began as a farming operation in 2020 but pivoted to supporting smallholders. “Our partner farmers’ costs and yields are often better than ours were when we farmed, because they’ve been doing this longer,” Li noted.
The recent funding from Truvalu follows a $4 million pre-Series A round in 2023, which included investments from Acumen Resilient Agriculture Fund and other investors. The new capital will allow FarmWorks to further scale its operations and digitize field processes, with the aim of providing smallholder farmers with better access to market insights, crop management, and supply chain optimization.
Peter Owaga from Truvalu said the investment aligns with the firm’s mission to support “the next generation of regenerative, climate-smart farmers.” Truvalu’s ability to arrange co-investment for larger opportunities ensures FarmWorks is well-positioned to expand its impact.