Selling raw materials is a tough way for farmers to make income. The higher up the value chain a farmer can sell their product, the more income they can make.  

Mamlo Foods gets farmers on a higher rung of the value chain through a solar-powered, container-based microfactory that can process crops like peanuts, cassava and bananas into higher value products. They organize women farmers into cooperatives, bringing together groups of smallholder farmers. Each cooperative owns a microfactory with a 40-acre processing capacity. Mamlo Foods also provides training on producing value-added products, food safety standards, and why group selling is more profitable. They then connect farmers to higher-paying, larger buyers, boosting their income and market access.

Irene Etyang is a food scientist who founded Mamlo Foods to increase income of rural women farmers. She grew up in rural Kenya, where her parents were smallholder farmers, and she personally suffered from malnutrition growing up. She's a food innovator and has launched multiple food lines while working closely with a range of Agri-Food SMEs. With five years of experience in product development, Irene has launched multiple food lines and she’s influenced Kenyan tax policy to enhance inter-county trade.