East Africa Foods Secures $40 Million to Scale Agribusiness Infrastructure and Regional Logistics

East Africa Foods has raised about $40 million to expand its food supply chain infrastructure, marking a major milestone for agricultural logistics in the region. The funding includes a $26 million Series B equity round led by the Private Infrastructure Development Group, through its InfraCo investment arm, alongside Oikocredit and FMO. Existing shareholders ARAF, Goodwell, Africa Eats and FINCA also reinvested in the company. The broader capital raise additionally includes debt funding from the Schmidt Family Foundation.

Headquartered in Dar es Salaam, East Africa Foods operates as an agritech and food distribution company that sources produce directly from more than 28,000 registered smallholder farmers. The enterprise aggregates, grades, stores and processes the produce before distributing it to more than 10,000 urban retailers. Its products reach consumers under brands including Onja and Golden Banana. Founder and chief executive officer Elia Timotheo noted that a third of what farmers grow never reaches a table, framing this as a solvable infrastructure problem rather than a farming issue.

Claire Jarratt, head of investment management for InfraCo, stated that the offering aligns with their mandate to deliver inclusive and climate-resilient growth. Strengthening the company presence in Tanzania and expanding its data-driven business into Kenya will enable the mobilization of future finance into the sector. Samuel Kibiri of Oikocredit emphasized that building climate-resilient food systems requires investment in the infrastructure connecting farmers to markets. Peter Byrde of FMO added that supporting the next phase of growth helps build a more efficient, resilient, and inclusive food system across the region.

Why This Matters

Agricultural value chains across East Africa face severe physical bottlenecks that result in high levels of post-harvest loss. By targeting the missing layer of logistics, storage, and processing, investments of this scale directly address structural inefficiencies that constrain smallholder farmer incomes and urban food security. The integration of digital solutions with physical fleet and warehousing assets provides a scalable model that bridges the gap between rural production and rapidly growing urban retail markets.

Involving development finance institutions alongside specialized impact investors creates a blended finance framework capable of unlocking complex regional expansion. As East Africa Foods scales its operations from Tanzania into Kenya, the deployment of both equity and debt capital demonstrates a viable pathway for crowding in private sector investment. This operational expansion lays the groundwork for improved market access and enhanced resilience across the wider agricultural ecosystem.

Opportunities

• Logistics Contractors: Opportunities to partner on fleet expansion, cold-chain transport, and warehousing construction to support wider regional distribution networks.
• Agri-Tech Integrators: Commercial openings to supply digital grading, inventory management, and farm-to-shelf traceability software for growing supply chains.
• Financial Institutions: Pathways to structure future debt and equity syndications as proven agritech business models scale across East Africa.
• Agricultural Producers: Direct avenues for registered smallholder farmer networks to secure reliable off-take agreements and reduce crop wastage.

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